


Into the Abyss

by ArtForRogue



Series: Pacific Rim AU: The Abyss Calls [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim (2013), Anal Sex, Angst with a Happy Ending, Established Relationship, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Gang's all here - Freeform, Love Confessions, M/M, Marriage, Minor Allura/Lance (Voltron), Minor Pidge | Katie Holt/Ina Leifsdottir, POV Keith (Voltron), Shiro and Keith are both Vers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2019-09-10
Packaged: 2020-07-08 21:55:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19876696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtForRogue/pseuds/ArtForRogue
Summary: After discovering that Shiro has not been entirely truthful about what he knows regarding Earth's Kaiju problem, Keith finds himself thrown into a conspiracy that involves more than he could have ever imagined.In Part 2 of The Abyss Calls Series, Keith and Shiro must work together to send the Kaiju home - with a little help from strange new friends.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back! It's been awhile, huh? I initially did not plan to write a second part to the PacRim AU but uhhh here it is. The series is complete and will be updated every other week. Part 2 is quite a bit longer than Part 1 (by about 10k?) but you'll understand why I think. Hope you enjoy!

“Shiro, who is Honerva?” 

As soon as the query left his lips, Keith knew it was the wrong thing to ask. He watched as Shiro’s expression shifted from kind-hearted confusion to something cold, neutral, and so foreign to Keith he may as well have been looking at a stranger. The neural bridge between them was just as devoid -- and though Keith searched for some kind of answer in the memory they had shared, there was nothing there for him now. 

The alarm coursing through him was unfortunately enough to blindside him to the Kaiju rising from the clouds to greet them. 

It curled around the  _ Black Lion  _ like a cat with her prey, the sudden heavy weight enough to jolt them from their easy descent into a break-neck dive. The hit pulled a yell from Keith, but the shrill sound of the alarms drowned out everything but the animalistic cry of the Kaiju in its victory. 

Keith didn’t know Kaiju could fly. 

It would be just his luck to encounter the first ever flying Kaiju on his first real  _ Jaeger _ run. 

“Shiro!” Keith had to manually turn to look at his partner and saw him slowly blink back to awareness. For all the good that it did, Shiro gasped out a, “Keith?” just as the Kaiju holding them sent them into a spiral drop. 

The chamber of the  _ Jaeger _ was outfitted with enough technology to keep both Keith and Shiro stable, but in the end it was like riding a rollercoaster that had an indefinite end-time. Through the eyes of the  _ Black Lion,  _ Keith could see the swell of the ocean rising up to meet them and recognized the faint dark shadow of a second Kaiju lying in wait. 

“Fuck!” Keith yelled, scrambling for any kind of tactic to get them to safety, to save themselves, but came up with only empty air. 

The waters of the Pacific opened as the second Kaiju surfaced, thick waves cutting through the once-still blue waters to reveal the scaly horror that would drag them under. It dragged its eight eyes up to meet the gaze of the  _ Black Lion _ , and Keith would never give these creatures the benefit of sentience, but he swore it cracked open its mouth in an eerie smile.

Nothing would escape his lips so he cried out his horrors and shared all else by their sacred connection.

Shiro had his eyes closed as they hit the water. 

….

It felt like hours before the first claw slid into the  _ Black Lion _ ’s shell. It was rounded, dull, and easily as wide as both Shiro and Keith standing hip to hip. Keith blinked awake just in time to watch the pearly white of it curve inside the piloting chamber and slowly ease open the head of the  _ Black Lion _ as if she were something precious. Confusion washed through Keith seconds before nausea caught up and forced him to cover his mouth, lest he spill his last meal all over the delicate innards of their  _ Jaeger _ . 

The claw continued to pry open the shell as Keith untangled himself from his Spinal Clamp, the Kaiju unhurried as it managed to slip in a second monstrous claw. The circuitry suit was being a piece of shit, though, and Keith near screamed as he finally managed to slam his hand against the emergency release. 

The Clamp released in a blessed moment of steam and sparks, allowing Keith the chance to hurry over to where Shiro’s limp body remained. “Shiro.” Keith could see his chest moving, could still feel the ghost Drift linger between them -- it was likely the shock was keeping him unconscious. 

Keith  _ really  _ needed Shiro to wake up. 

He found the emergency release on Shiro’s circuitry suit and pulled the faulty metal until it broke off from the mount, panicking until he heard the tell-tale click of the Clamp unhooking. Shiro fell into his arms, limp as a corpse, and made Keith stumble back into the curve of the  _ Black Lion’ _ s shell. The other man groaned at the rough handling, but Keith heard the scrape of the third claw slide in behind him and decided rough handling was the way to go. 

Shiro’s helmet clattered to the floor the same moment that the Kaiju pried off the  _ Black Lion _ ’s head. Keith didn’t even question the lack of sea water flooding inside the chamber, just held Shiro close to him as he came face-to-face with the Kaiju that had dragged them into the sea. 

The iris was pitch black like the bottom of the ocean, but this close Keith could see the small ring of purple that surrounded the slitted pupil. 

That pupil expanded into a rounded shape at the sight of Keith, reminiscent of a cat at play. Despite the danger that should have indicated, it was still breathtaking to see, to be this close to something so monumentally bigger than anything he knew and yet still as living, breathing as himself. It hummed, soft and soothing, and Keith was hit with the urge to stand and move closer. Within the darkness of the inky black of the iris was softer blues, with rings and lines threaded with colors Keith couldn’t name. 

The heavy weight of Shiro’s body pressed against him was the only thing that kept Keith from moving towards the alluring darkness.

Something was supposed to happen -- he wasn’t sure what, but the more the Kaiju stared the more Keith was convinced that he was cheating death. Shiro was still limp in his arms and Keith’s muscles burned at the strain of having to hold him up, but if he moved even a single hair he was sure they would die.

The eye blinked and pulled away, diving down beneath the  _ Black Lion _ in a rush of wind that threatened to push Keith over the edge. By the time he stabilized both himself and Shiro, the Kaiju was gone and their view was unobstructed. It allowed for the first look at their surroundings -- and Keith finally fell to the floor.

The undersea cave was huge, the walls so long and deep that darkness claimed the horizon before Keith’s own eyesight would make sense of the end. These walls were lined in a gap-less decoration of crystals that varied in size, color, and shape, but were beautiful all the same. They even led to the pool of seawater that acted as the bottom of the cave, disturbed only by the Kaiju that had presumably dived back beneath the surface and left the waters choppy and rough. 

Even though the crystals glowed with fluorescent light under the water Keith could not see the Kaiju nor any exit to speak of. 

Not that an exit would have been useful at this point, anyway -- the  _ Black Lion _ had been crushed into the crystals just a touch shy over two hundred and fifty feet above the water level. Hitting that would be the equivalent to jumping to their deaths. If the water didn’t manage to kill them, the crystals at the bottom would.

Whatever plans the Kaiju had for them, Keith couldn’t find himself to care. He curled Shiro closer in his arms and buried his face into the plating of the drivesuit, sobbing when the terror of their unknown future seized him.

Two hours in, and Shiro was still not awake. 

Keith had propped him up against the Neural divider to keep him stable, then explored the small circular floor of Black’s remains. All-in-all, the fall hadn’t cost them much in terms of damage -- there were a few pieces of metal that had broken free and the one Clamp had been ruined by Keith’s desperation to free Shiro, but if Keith could get Shiro awake, the Jaeger could technically still function. 

That being said, Keith had tried their communications system first and was met only with static. The system itself was fine -- just like the rest of the equipment -- but without the outer casing of the shell, there was no way to push a signal through.

If Keith wanted to create a makeshift radio, he would need to put the functionality of Black at risk. 

Even if he managed that, there was no telling if any signal could be able to pierce through the cave walls. 

The helplessness of the situation made Keith yell, his cry echoing back in a haunted imitation.

Three hours in, and Shiro was still not awake. 

The cave was warm enough that Keith was starting to overheat. He first stripped himself of the drivesuit then worked on Shiro’s, fingers lingering at his neck to confirm that there was still a pulse. No amount of jostling would wake the man so Keith left him to sleep, his head cradled in Keith’s lap. 

Sweat ran down his neck and arms, and stuck his overgrown bangs to his face so terribly he thought of cutting them with his spare knife, hidden within their emergency rations. But he knew he shouldn’t do anything drastic while Shiro was still asleep, so he kept himself grounded and traced his thumb along the line of Shiro’s relaxed jaw. 

Four hours in, Keith felt the cave around them start to shake. He had started to doze under Shiro’s warm weight, but the jarring sound of the waves beneath them breaking and the crystals above them clinking together was enough to shock panic through him. 

As suddenly as it had started, the trembling stopped.

Keith threw his gaze around in the darkness, breathing hard through his nose as he fought to calm his rapid heartbeat. There was nothing coming -- not yet. Exhaustion and the fall of adrenaline finally made him relax and lean back against the remaining curve of metal that had acted as his resting place for the last hour. 

There was no longer anything there. 

Keith gasped as he fell through the open air, Shiro still held tight in his arms as they plummeted down, splashing to safety in a deep pool of water. It was cold, and tasted free of salt when it flooded his mouth. He pulled them both from the inky black water and onto the shore, shivering from both the cold and the concern that the fall had injured Shiro. But no -- his shaky hands found no new wounds marring Shiro’s body, so for a moment he felt relief. 

He turned his gaze up and found a human standing before him. 

There was nothing familiar about her, though Keith could see her clearly outlined by the warm, white light that shone at the end of the pathway she currently blocked. The answer was there all along, hidden in memories that even Shiro could not recall. “Honerva.” 

Honerva was an older woman, tall and thin, with her graying hair carefully pinned up and out of her face. She was dressed in a loose, purple robe with gold lining that looked too fine and too warm for the dark cave she was standing in. Keith would only describe her expression as hopeful -- but for what, he couldn't guess.

She was older than the woman that Shiro kept in his memories, but recognizable all the same. “Keith.” Only the softest concern colored her tone, and as she stepped forward, Keith wondered how she had found them. “There is much to be done.” 

Instinct was all that pushed Keith forward now -- and his instincts were screaming at him not to trust this woman. She must have seen this reflected in the curl of his body around Shiro, because she simply stepped aside and clasped her hands in front of her. 

She watched, then, as Keith carried Shiro past her and through the short tunnel, not following until there was a safe distance stretched between them. Keith had no plan but to get Shiro to safety, and there was nowhere to go but forward. 

A sea of Kaiju waited at the end. 

Keith dragged himself to the edge of the precipice and stopped once his feet threatened to slide off the mossy edge. The underground looked much like where they had just been -- but the water and walls were teeming with Kaiju of all shapes, colors, and sizes. He was able to recognize a few types and sort them into their appropriate categories, but the sheer number and the way that they seemed to be co-existing left him numb. 

A Category II hung from the crystals in the curved roof, drooling as it alone watched the approaching humans. 

A chunk bigger than Keith’s entire body fell into the pool when the Kaiju repositioned itself, but the subsequent spray of the water did nothing to snap Keith from his numbness.

“I suspect you have questions.” Honerva spoke from her place to Keith’s left, eyes trained on the creatures before them. Keith could only dumbly nod, watching as a Kaiju eerily similar to the one that had pulled Black from the sky dipped its head and groomed the smaller Kaiju that was curled in its wings. The illuminated cave was filled with chirps and growls and coos he had never heard from these beasts before, a cacophony of sound that threatened to make him go deaf, but he swore he heard the little one  _ purr.  _

A new rise of noise made his gaze snap down to a gaping hole in the pool -- this, too, ringed with purple -- as a new Kaiju pulled itself through, wolf-like in a way Keith had never seen before. 

Behind it swam a wee pup, the first adolescent Kaiju he had ever seen. There was a touch of hysterical amusement in the realization that it was a baby and yet probably still bigger than an Earth whale. 

“I want to know the truth.” Keith finally managed to say, his voice cracking with fear and confusion and every other emotion that currently plagued him. “But first, you must wake Shiro.” 

Honerva cast her glance to the prone body held in Keith’s arms. “If he still sleeps, it is not of my own power alone.” 

“What is of your own power, then?” It took everything in Keith to not set Shiro down and grab the blade resting heavy on his hip, to demand answers that she so lazily avoided. “Did you call all these Kaiju here? Why are they -- How are you --”

“It seems even you do not know the questions you want answers for. You cannot demand for information when you struggle to find the right question, first.” Honerva stepped closer and raised her hand to touch Shiro, but Keith really did growl this time. “Be calm, boy. Do you want him to wake or not?”

The fact that Shiro startled awake as soon as Honerva’s fingers smoothed over his brow scared Keith more than the Kaiju. 

But it was his touch soothing Shiro as he returned to his senses. “Keith.” The way that Shiro said his name reassured Keith enough that physically, he was fine. But mentally? “Where are we?” 

“We’re in a Kaiju nest with Honerva. Please,  _ please  _ tell me you know what the hell is going on.” 

“Bits and pieces.” Shiro placed his hand on Keith’s shoulder as he hoisted himself into a sitting position, face warped with nausea, dizziness, or some mix of both. Keith whined in the back of his throat at the sight, but Shiro just surged forward and met him for a gentle kiss. Oh. 

When they parted again, Keith felt small parts of his increasingly alarming anxiety finally melt away. Yeah, they were in the middle of a Kaiju nest, but he was still with Shiro. 

“We’re okay, Keith.” 

Looking into those steel gray eyes, Keith met him with a nod. “So long as we are together.” 

As one, they turned their gaze to Honerva. She continued to wait, eyes trained on the two of them with a clear-minded concentration that reminded Keith of the patience Shiro often asked for. Only this pair of eyes made him shiver with a sense of dread.

“If you’re quite ready,” Honerva motioned towards another tunnel, “we can discuss more in a quieter setting.” 

They cast one last look out to the water before following along. 

Not that Keith trusted Honerva -- he had seen Shiro’s memories of the woman, yes, but that did not mean she had earned any of their loyalty. Through the violent haze, Keith had seen only further pain and suffering and promises that seemed impossible at the time. 

Ending the war with the Kaiju seemed impossible, but so did traveling into the Rift. If there was some way to put a stop to the meaningless bloodshed, Keith knew it was up to the both of them to do whatever they could to bring about that peace.

He would do anything if it kept Shiro safe. 

Honerva’s inner chambers were cramped compared to the wide cavern just outside, but the way she had decorated it left it feeling cozy instead of claustrophobic. Not that there was much to her personal touches -- an extra set of clothes draped over a jutting crystal, a pile of furs that stretched along the floor, a few ancient pieces of technology that looked long dead. Keith squinted at the furs on the floor long enough to realize that they definitely came from the Kaiju in the cavern. 

Once both Keith and Shiro entered the room, questions rushed to mind, unbidden. Nothing made it past Keith’s lips because it was Shiro would commanded Honerva’s attention. “What can you tell us about this place?” 

“We reside in a space that is simultaneously old and new -- a pocket reality in between other realities. Time is slow here, but still aligned with other realities; it is the reason your shores are being invaded every month instead of every hour though the Kaiju continue to flee to the Pacific ocean.” Honerva swept her hand towards the cool stone and both men sat at their respective distance. “The Kaiju do not belong here. I do not belong here. And the both of you certainly do not belong here. But by means of powerful magic, we were all drawn together.” 

“So far as I know, it was  _ you _ that brought us here.” Keith bit back, ignoring the sharp look his fiancé sent his way. 

“You speak the truth. I am the one that ordered the Kaiju to bring you to this pocket reality.” She paused, a brief look of regret washing over her features. “The extraction was meant to be peaceful, but I lose my connection to the beasts when they are enraged. There is no way to control how a wounded animal acts.” 

Adam. She was talking about Adam. 

For the first time since he woke, Keith saw Shiro’s eyes widen with betrayal, with anger -- saw the shift in his body that spoke of sudden distrust. Good. This woman was not worth their trust. 

Even though Shiro did not need it, Keith still placed his hand on Shiro’s arm and joined them together as one united front. 

The lingering touch of the Neural Handshake was still strong enough for Keith to feel the surge of love Shiro offered at the simple motion. Keith dipped his head and linked their fingers together, returning the affection before it would be ripped away again.

“Humans haven’t concentrated on space travel for years now. The concept of alternate realities is familiar -- but for us, it’s all still theory. You mean to tell us you come from another reality entirely, with magic and space travel?” Keith could believe the magic part easily enough -- he had fallen through a wormhole himself -- so he couldn’t blame Shiro’s doubt coloring his words in such an ugly tone. Honerva looked unaffected by it anyway. 

“You may not believe it but there was a time when I sought to destroy all other realities. I cannot describe for you what it means to look into the heart of the universe, to have all that power sitting neatly in the palm of your hand, and expect you to believe me. I hardly believe it myself, at times.” Honerva leaned back against the wall, defenseless and open. “But I chose you for a reason, Takashi Shirogane. You have led the universe to freedom in my original reality -- I need you to do this once more.” 

Shiro reeled back and stared, disbelieving, as Honerva continued, “The Kaiju have entered this pocket reality not of their own accord. They are being chased by an evil monarchy known as the Altean Empire, bent on complete domination of the known universe and all separate realities -- and the Kaiju will continue to flee here, will continue to flood your oceans, until you can send them home.” 

“The Kaiju are coming from another reality.” Shiro finally clarified. 

“Yes.” 

“The wormholes that they have created then lead them into  _ our _ reality.” 

“Yes.” 

“More will come unless we participate in some -- some  _ space war  _ for all of the universe?” 

“Yes.” 

“How the  _ fuck _ are we supposed to do that?” 

“By finding the White Lion.”

All three of them looked up to the source of the new voice, standing carefully in the entrance of the room. 

He and Shiro both rushed to their feet to confront the fact that  _ Allura  _ was here now, too. 

If she had any idea of the complete and utter bafflement coursing through the  _ Jaeger _ pilots, she made no such indication, blinking at the both of them as her face broke out into a joyful smile. 

“Oh, you’re so  _ young _ !” Allura breathed out in wonder, bringing her hands up to cup Shiro’s face. She shifted his cheeks back and forth under her palms with what Keith suspected back a bitten back squeal at the softness there. “And Keith,” He shifted nervously under her gaze, wondering if he would be subjected to her soft touch as well, but she kept to Shiro. “You even moreso. I had forgotten how your hair looked when it was short.” 

“Short?” But there was no time for Keith to wonder how his shoulder-length hair could be considered short -- there was a doppelganger Allura standing before them, looking positively delighted to see them. 

As if she hadn’t seen them mere hours ago. 

Keith slid his gaze to Shiro and knew that pout of confusion better than his own. “You’re not really our Allura, are you?” He guessed.

At the question from Keith, Allura stepped back from the both of them and instead stood by Honerva’s side.

Their resemblance to terrible caricatures of each other was even more noticeable once they were hip-to-hip. 

“Yes. We came here, to this space between realities -- together. Though...not wholly by our own volition. When we entered the remaining consciousness of all existence, we never imagined there would be any chance of our survival.” Allura glanced at Honerva and continued, the both of them now wearing tight frowns. “Here we remain, alone until the Kaiju were brought to us.” 

Keith took the chance to study the small space Allura and Honerva called home -- really focused himself on all the earlier pieces he had missed; the star maps drawn from memory, the tattered remains of armor, and the increasingly obvious lack of food or water. 

“How long have you been here?” Their clothes looked fresh and almost new and Allura still wore makeup, though it looked as if part of it had been smudged by a scuffle. 

“A few phoebs. Perhaps longer. It is difficult to keep track of time in these caves, especially with all the Kaiju that cycle through.” Honerva let her gaze settle on Keith and Shiro, frown even more noticeable now, like the slew of questions bothered her. “I have already told you all that is of importance. As much as I would love to watch you struggle with the finer details, it is of little importance; focus on our true objective.”

“ _ Honerva _ .” 

“No, Allura, she’s right.” Shiro broke his silence and stepped forward, cupping Allura’s cheek as she looked on. “You have a plan. I want to hear it.” 

The strength and level tone of Shiro’s voice made Keith feel as if this really was for some greater purpose -- but the pain that had been wrought on them to bring them both to this point would not let him remain quiet. “Shiro..!” 

Shiro dropped his hand from Allura’s face and turned to Keith, the determination in his eyes an echo to the day when he had assured Keith he would pilot again. “Keith.” 

“Damnit, Shiro, we don’t owe these two anything!” The words fell from him anyway, and Keith hated the way they made Shiro frown. “This woman killed Adam -- she _ took your arm  _ ! She controlled your body to drag us both here, then left me wondering for hours, alone in some unknown sea cave if I was going to watch you die in my arms.” The hitch was what broke Shiro -- his expression softened as he stepped forward to comfort Keith, but Keith just threw up his arms and backed away. “We fight Kaiju because they come into our cities and kill us. What more is to be understood?!” 

He felt hysterical, but everything that happened in the last 24 hours collapsed on him at once and the fact that Shiro was willing to ignore that to learn some self-proclaimed ‘truth’ rattled Keith to his core. 

A long, winded cry echoed through the cave.

Keith knew the sound of a dying Kaiju just as well as anyone. He recognized faintly that Shiro called his name as he ran from the hollow, but did not stop until he had his eyes on the beast that called its swan song. In the pool, the others fanned around the wounded one -- a Category III, if Keith had to guess. The blood that leaked from its wounds stained the water so blue it was like a summer sky, perfect and serene until you looked to the gasping maw of the dying beast in the middle of it. 

It cried out again, shifting in some vain attempt to ease the suffering. From here Keith could see the familiar handy work of a  _ Jaeger _ \-- holes from photon cannons, bruises from rough right-hooks, and a missing horn that looked to be sawn off. 

It wasn’t often that Kaiju managed to escape from battle, especially considering more dug in and fought to their deaths, but a few would flee. The control center would always track them down as far as their signals could reach, but there was no sending a Jaeger that deep into the Pacific. 

This Kaiju was built for the water, aerodynamic and scaled pitch black, a beauty if you ignored the cyan blood and chunks of flesh missing from its body. For the first time since he had run out of the cave, Keith wondered what he was hoping to see here. 

The surrounding Kaiju answered the call with yips and coos of their own that cut off abruptly when the beast in the center grew still. Keith felt the silence pounding in his ears, mouth opened in a silent gasp when he saw Allura leaping past. He meant to grab her, but she was too fast, jumping from crystal to crystal until she was in the shallow end of the pool with the rest of the Kaiju. 

Shiro and Honerva were not far behind and joined Keith at the edge to watch. 

“What is she doing?” Keith asked. “She’ll be trampled.”

Even as he said it, he knew the statement to be untrue. The Kaiju were parting for Allura in a clear path to the head of the dying creature. When she reached it and pressed her hands to the scaly muzzle, there was no hesitance. 

“She will bring the creature back from the edge of death. As is the way of the Alchemist and Queen of Altea. Watch, and see these Kaiju for what they truly are.” Honerva raised her hand towards the pool but it was unnecessary -- Keith’s eyes had not left Allura since she jumped down the cliffside. 

A soft glow surrounded Allura as the surrounding Kaiju bowed their great bulks towards her, splashing the cyan water in their clumsy attempts to come closer and kneel. The crystals of the cave twinkled in turn with the growing energy -- flashing in red, blue, green, yellow, and purple, over and over, faster, before burning a brilliant white and washing all who watched in a gentle warmth. 

Keith didn’t even realize he was crying until he felt Shiro’s touch against his cheek. He turned into it and together they watched as the crystals reverted to their original colors. 

The Kajiu that had been just moments prior crying for death now nuzzled into the hands of its saviour, weak but alive, and though Keith was too far to know for sure, he was certain that Allura was laughing with delight. 

Calls of triumph and joy exploded through the cave as the remaining Kaiju raised their heads and splashed in the water, dancing around Allura in an animalistic display of wonder and reverence. 

This display was one part wonder and two parts dread -- Keith took Shiro’s hand in his own as they both came to the same realization. 

They never had to fight the Kaiju. 

These sweet, docile creatures were intelligent enough to live together in harmony, to allow another race to help them heal, and then give their thanks in a language only they would know.

And yet, the  _ Jaeger _ program had killed hundreds. 

The tears came faster now, but Keith was able to muffle his sobs when Shiro pulled him into a tight embrace and he immediately pressed his cheek to his shoulder. It wasn’t until his own heaving breaths calmed that Keith realized Shiro was crying too. 

He looked up and saw Shiro staring straight ahead at Honerva, their gazes locked in a silent conversation Keith could only hear the faintest wisps of. Shiro felt his fiance’s gaze and dipped his face down to press a kiss to the mess of dark hair before whispering, “You were right. We were never meant to win this battle.” 

A Kaiju newly emerging from the wormhole raised its head and screamed out her battle cry. When the rest answered with their heads tilted back and eyes wide open, Keith felt his heart open and answer the call. 

This was war.   
  


…

“This  _ Black Lion _ is different from my reality but goodness, she really commands respect in every timeline, doesn’t she?”

Allura pressed her fingers to the cool shell of the  _ Black Lion _ ’s head, continuing the motion until the bottom of her palm brushed against the maw of the beast. Seeing someone stand beside the parts of a  _ Jaeger _ was always a comical sight since the size difference was vast, but Keith could only watch with rapt attention as Allura continued her search for...something. 

“Did your Keith build her in your time as well, Queen Allura?” Only Shiro thought it necessary to call the woman by her full title, though Allura had assured them time and again friends need not for such formalities. 

The snort of laughter from her was certainly not formal. Keith frowned. “I’m terribly sorry — but no. My father built the Lions ages past, of a comet found in deep space. When they fight together they can form the peace-bringer Voltron. Or, that is what is supposed to happen.” 

“We had the _ Legendary Voltron _ as a Jaeger back home.” Keith remembered her debut flight more than anything else; misfortune finally claimed her glory and sent the pilots to early retirement. “Was that supposed to be our timeline’s version?” 

Both Shiro and Allura shook their heads in a quick answer, but Keith had to still wonder. 

“If we weren’t fighting Kaiju in your reality, what were we like?” Shiro finally asked once the silence had stretched enough. Keith leaned forward, eager to know too. They had been sitting in the pocket reality for some few hours now as they waited for the body to be retrieved by the Kaiju that had dragged them into the portal. Honerva had warned them it might take awhile for the extraction, so the three of them had settled in for the long wait and got to talking. 

Allura had pointed them to the inner cave where the Kaiju had delivered the head of the  _ Black Lion  _ to Honerva for confirmation — both Shiro and Keith had been relieved to see her mostly unscathed. 

“Well,” Allura smiled as she recalled, “everyone was the best of friends, even though the circumstances that brought us together were harsh. Shiro and I were always kind to one another, but I’m afraid you and I had a falling out of sorts, Keith.” 

That didn’t surprise him in the least. Seems he was doomed to be awkward around people in every reality. “What for?”

“When we found out you were part Galra, I had a difficult time seeing past my own prejudices. We did eventually reconcile, but I wish I had been more open minded to begin with.” Upon still seeing the confusion written clear on both men’s faces, Allura added, “Galra are purple cat aliens.”

“I always thought of myself as more of a dog person.” Keith muttered. It only made Shiro laugh harder. 

She continued to divulge in their shared history, excitedly waving with her hands at the climax of each story and growing quiet when things appeared grim. There wasn’t enough time to cover every aspect, of course, but Allura made sure to touch on anything she thought the two men might find interesting. 

In an act of kindness, she did not mention Shiro’s death and resurrection nor the fact that they had grown apart in the final act of their war. 

When Allura trailed off at the end, the silence was uncomfortable. Earth being plagued by an alien species and near crippled because of it was too familiar a narrative for it to be amusing. 

“It’s hard to think of a reality where I didn’t grow up with my parents.” Keith finally said, running his thumb over the curled fist of his left hand. When Allura had initially mentioned Keith’s origins, he thought it was -- not  _ funny,  _ necessarily, but too odd to take seriously. Then the thought of it took root and spiralled into something ugly. “I lost Dad young -- just like your Keith, I guess, but Mom was always there. The one fight that nearly --” Keith stopped himself in a rush, eyes downcast. That reality had been closer than he initially thought possible. 

“You still made a family for yourself.” Shiro took Keith’s hand in his own and squeezed, smiling gently for when Keith looked up to meet his gaze. “You had your friends. You had your Mom. You had me. Even in another reality, I still fell in love with you.” 

“Yeah.” Keith confirmed, smile strained but true, full of hope and love and relief. 

“Of course.” Allura’s voice was breathless as she turned away.

They continued to pass the time with easy conversation but eventually Keith and Shiro ran out of questions to ask. Their lives were oddly parallel to one another to the point where Shiro broke out in a grin when Allura confirmed that, yes, his sickness had been cured in her reality. He was of course happy for his other self but knew this meant something for him, in this reality. 

It wasn’t long before Honerva returned to confirm that the  _ Black Lion  _ had been settled in the great cistern.

“In order for our plan to work, you must return to your own reality and gather a team of people you can trust.” Honerva explained as they followed her back outside. “The White Lion will be drawn out only by a chosen few -- if Allura is present in your reality as you say, then it is imperative that you convince her to join the cause.” 

They rounded the bend of the stone and were once more exposed to the calling cries of the Kaiju that swarmed the waters.  _ Black  _ had been leaned against the overhang of the cliff, her head still noticeably missing. Keith frowned at that, though he was happy to see that she had been transported with minimal damage.

“I know you said you would use a wormhole to return us, but we’ll fall apart in the Pacific like this.” 

The waters shifted as a Kaiju rose to greet them,  _ Black _ ’s head held carefully between rows of pearl-white teeth. With the wolfish look of the creature, Keith couldn’t help but be reminded of a puppy with their first squeaky toy, complete with the sparkling joy hidden deep in those dark irises. At a command from Honerva, it placed the head carefully onto the  _ Jaeger _ body, the hooks and clasps snapping everything back into place as Honerva waved her hand.

If you turned your head to the side and squinted, she looked good as new. 

The Kaiju remained, panting softly as it turned from the  _ Black Lion _ to the group of humans and back. “This Kaiju will return with you as an olive branch and proof of your claims.” Allura explained as she stepped closer. Where all of Keith’s experience in life told him to expect bloodshed, he forced himself to watch as the Kaiju bent down and nuzzled into her offered hand. His body was still tense as Allura continued, saying, “He will also work as our beacon to call you back when you are ready to face Voltron.” 

So this was goodbye, for now.

Keith took another look at  _ Black  _ and knew they were finally going home.

Shiro’s deep sigh startled Keith back to the present. If Keith only had his fierce love of the man to work with, he’d guess that the frustration stemmed from the fact that the weight of the universe had been placed on them with little to no warning and under twenty-four hours no less, but the residual Drift happily informed Keith that Shiro was also annoyed that this meant wedding celebrations were going to take an indefinite backseat. 

“Seriously?” Keith suppressed a laugh only for his fiancé’s sake. 

“I’m grateful to have answers to all my questions and to be able to take direct action to solve all our problems,” Shiro slid his gaze to Keith and had the gall to look mournful, “but would it have hurt to wait a day or two?” 

“We’re supposed to go find an ancient being with the help of our friends to save the known universe,” Keith turned his eyes back to the _ Black Lion _ but only because Shiro made a damn good point and he was on the verge of agreement, “and all you can think about is that?” 

“I have a few other ideas, too.” Keith choked on air as a rush of thoughts cherry-picked their way into his headspace, one by one until Keith was cherry-red too. One particular thought made him reach over to shove at Shiro. 

“No?” Shiro laughed when Keith just proceeded to sputter. It wasn’t often that he was able to get his husband speechless and for the moment -- as he laughed along -- it made him forget that the world had gone to shit. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Shiro return to their reality only to find things a bit different from how they recall...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *please bear in mind that this chapter earns the E rating ;) *   
> Happy birthday from me to you.

Being pushed through a wormhole was worse than free-falling through dead air and frankly Keith wished Honerva had done them the courtesy of knocking them out before sending the two of them on their way. The Spinal Clamps had worked better than Keith had anticipated from the fall and subsequent rough handling of  _ Black,  _ which lured him into a stupid sense of security that led him to this moment. 

The taste of panic on his tongue was echoed by Shiro’s own yell -- and though the whole process took maybe 10 seconds, Keith felt he aged two years by the time they were spat out. 

But the crystal blue waters of the Pacific and the answering blue of the sky was enough to ease his heart rate down a few notches. 

The  _ Black Lion  _ dropped into the water with no grace, quickly followed by the Kaiju that was meant to be their honored guest. It yipped at the initial taste of salty water and shook itself, clearly unhappy to once more be soaked to the bone. They needed a few minutes to calibrate after the jump, though, so it was content to swim in circles around  _ Black  _ until both Keith and Shiro were confident to takeoff.

“How are we supposed to keep track of this-- ah!” Keith yelled when he got a good look at the other man, the sudden sound jarring enough for Shiro to flinch back. 

“What? What is it?” Shiro was slower to realize what had happened, mouth slack as he looked Keith up and down. How the suit had grown with Keith, he’d never guess -- space magic, whatever -- but his husband-to-be was noticeably changed. “How’d you get taller? Wh -- I swear you’ve bulked up too --” 

“Your hair!” Keith continued to panic, despite Shiro’s obvious appreciative gaze. 

“What about my hair?” 

“It’s completely white!” 

Keith watched as Shiro touched the glass visor of his helmet, frowning with obvious confusion but unable to confirm this new development. “Take off your helmet. I’ll show you.” Keith suggested. 

At first it looked like Shiro was going to follow through, but he ended up just shaking his head. “I believe you. But why these physical changes, all of a sudden?” Keith’s lack of knowledge was obvious even without his shrug. “Don’t say space magic.” 

“It’s probably space magic.” Keith grinned. 

Shiro looked Keith up and down in a shameless way once more. “Then I’ll send Honerva a fruit basket in thanks.” 

Ooh those were fighting words and Shiro knew it. Keith was undeterred, drawing close with his own unabashed gaze, “Bold words from an old timer--” 

Both men turned to the waters when an incoming transmission flashed against the glass of their helmets, washing their vision in muted green. 

“Coran!” Shiro couldn’t hold back the excitement in his voice -- it felt so, so good to be back. “This is Pilot Shirogane reporting.” 

“Pilot Kogane reporting.” 

“It’s good to hear your voices, boys.” Coran sounded vaguely like he was sobbing, but Keith could understand that -- they had likely blipped off the monitors for near 24 hours, if not longer. “We have eyes on  _ Black _ . We just, ah, wanted to get a quick confirm on the Kaiju not ripping you apart?” 

There was no quick way to explain that. “For the time being we need your trust that this Kaiju will behave.” Shiro said, eyes trailing as the beast circled them for an eighth loop. “There’s so much to tell you --” 

“I’ll say!” Coran was  _ definitely  _ crying. “It’s been two years!” 

...

When the world holds a funeral, it seems rude to come back and prove their efforts null.    


Their return was soaked in tears and watery smiles to match. Keith was hugged so many times that the absence of a body against his was starting to make him feel unsettled -- though Shiro quickly solved that dilemma by standing next to his partner with one hand steadying him on his shoulder. 

After being received at the base and taking the day to re-connect, Keith and Shiro found the broadcast and watched in dead silence as the world mourned. They were informed that there was a smaller, more intimate funeral held on the base in their honor, but the recording had long since been lost as no one wanted to upload it online. Keith watched as the crowd wept and was glad that he did not know how his family had looked when they were informed of his disappearance. 

Shiro had no family left of his own -- had been talking excitedly about finally having a mother again, especially when it was Krolia -- so Keith was glad to see that his fans and admirers had more than made up for the empty space. Bouquets of flowers surrounded their stone memorial in a halo of colors, piled so high Keith couldn’t even make out their etched names through the already scratchy film of the camera. 

Their hands reached for each other when Krolia lit the candles on either side, cheeks dry only because it was starkly obvious that she had cried earlier that day. When she fell back into line with the remaining Pilots and directed her lost gaze to the crowd of people gathered, Keith knew she was remembering his father’s funeral. 

He wasn’t sure what he wanted from this viewing -- this morbid curiosity that demanded he know how the pilots of  _ The Black Lion  _ were honored -- but it wasn’t to watch his friends and family cry during the 21-gun salute. 

When Shiro’s own breathing hitched in that telltale sign, Keith reached over and turned off the video. 

Returning to Krolia was what cemeted the reality of it all -- she flew in on her  _ Jaeger _ , Kolivan in tow, and woke him at 3 in the morning with the steadfast demand to hug her son. Keith was still blinking sleep from his eyes when he felt her arms around him and her tears pressed to his forehead, soft whispers in their mother tongue that he eventually echoed in turn. 

When Shiro stirred as well, mumbling sleepy nonsense, he was dragged into the embrace without hesitation. 

It was an odd mix of emotion, this realization that they had been presumed dead for two years. Krolia was a pointed reminder of the truth of it, yes, but that was further compounded by the differences Keith noticed around the base. Because the truth of the matter is, if enough time has passed, even a loved one will begin to look like a stranger. A new haircut, weight change, marriage, divorce, having a child or two, injuries small and large -- greeting their friends after this two year gap was akin to squinting at a blurry photograph. The key features were still there, but it took a moment to grasp what was hidden in the fuzzy edges. 

Everyone did their best to walk Shiro and Keith through the gap in their memories, but missing pieces kept popping up. The first was arguably the most annoying; Lance talking offhand about how Pidge’s wife was in charge of reviewing all damages to the  _ Black Lion _ . 

“Wait -- when did Pidge get married?” Keith asked, his brow furrowed as he followed Lance to the cafeteria. 

“Oh, shit.” It seemed like a laughable moment, but neither man felt up to it and they kept walking to avoid the awkward air. “Yeah, that was -- I think that was eight months back, now. Get her to show you the pictures sometime. It was a really classy theme, with  _ Sage Quest _ as their cake topper--” 

“The _ what _ \--” 

At the end of the week, Keith and Shiro had to reconvene or risk losing all they had learned. 

Since their disappearance two years prior, no new Kaiju attacks were recorded. 

There had been a world-wide funeral held in their honor following their disappearance. The U. S. government had given up the search after a month, which was respectable enough for two  _ Jaeger _ pilots. 

The Holts had managed to convince the army to continue with the  _ Jaeger _ program only for a year following the end of the Kaiju attacks. Though they warned that this should be seen as the calm before the storm and not the end, it was hard to justify continuing to spend millions on something that was no longer a threat. 

An innocent suggestion to shift the Jaegers into homeland security was what eventually led to the program being terminated. “They were going to use us to wage war.” Pidge whispered. “...Humans never learn.” 

But the Holts are nothing if productive geniuses -- before all funding was cut, they were able to take Keith’s blueprints and replicate _ Black Lion  _ into three more  _ Jaegers _ . 

“We’ve got _Cherry Bomb_ , _Sage_ _Quest_ , _Yellow Guardian,_ and of course, _Blue Shot_.”

Keith followed Hunk’s finger to each shiny new  _ Jaeger _ , ready and waiting for something to tear apart. They were modeled after  _ Black Lion _ ’s original design, but still managed to have their own distinct personalities.

_ Cherry Bomb _ was a subdued red, almost maroon, with claws that were wicked enough to send a chill through Keith. The fact that his  _ Mom  _ piloted her was not lost to him. 

_ Sage Quest  _ was smaller than the rest, meant for stealth and gathering. Her shell was covered in dark greens and grays, but Pidge would kill before admitting that she now piloted a camo  _ Jaeger _ . 

Last of the new  _ Jaegers _ was  _ Yellow Guardian.  _ She wore her title of Guardian well, with a reinforced yellow shell and bracers that could keep her grounded for as long as she needed. 

Hunk and Pidge didn’t need Keith’s approval, but he let out a low whistle of awe anyway. 

“If the funding was cut by the government, then…?” Keith trailed off. He didn’t understand why anyone was at the base, much less how it hadn’t been torn down for current military use. 

As always, Pidge was able to read between the lines. She cleared her throat to get Keith’s eyes back on her. “Believe it or not, the public love their  _ Jaegers _ \-- even when there’s no Kaiju to push back.” Pidge clarified. “We had  _ just  _ enough funding to keep the base open and the _ Jaegers _ ready for whatever came our way.”

“But no one expected _ Black Lion _ .” Hunk added, voice soft.

They all turned their gaze to where she stood in wait, covered in scaffolding and workers alike. There wasn’t much to do on her, considering whatever magic Honerva had pulled was efficient enough, but Keith couldn’t keep the team from her after explaining they had fallen through three separate wormholes. Through his own haze of trauma, he too was itching to see if there were any changes, small or large. Just because she had managed to get them home didn’t mean everything was the same. 

Keith frowned at the end of his re-telling, but only because Shiro had leaned forward, brow furrowed, with his prosthetic hand covering his mouth in clear perplexion. “What?” 

“They were busy with us gone, is all.” Shiro mumbled. 

“Well, what else did you learn?” When Shiro just squirmed in his spot on their bed, Keith moved closer, unashamed as he pushed away his hands to tangle their legs together. It wasn’t like Shiro to be shy about anything and the color on his cheeks was suspicious. “Shiro.” 

“While you were off with Pidge and Hunk, I went with Allura to the memorial.” 

Surprise washed over Keith, but he just frowned harder. That wasn’t the weirdest thing he could think of the team needing to share with Shiro, but they had already watched the memorial service so was it really necessary to--

“The memorial,” Shiro licked his lips, saying, “was for Takashi and Keith Shirogane.” 

All the air left Keith’s lungs. “That’s impossible.” 

“Posthumous marriage isn’t practiced very frequently anymore, but the base knew we were to be married, knew our plans, and with  _ Paragon Atlas  _ being as famous as she was it wasn’t hard to pull the necessary strings. They thought it would be what we wanted.” Shiro reached for Keith in an innocent gesture, but paused when he flinched away at the motion. “ _ Keith. _ ”

“It’s fine.” It wasn’t. 

“Baby.” Shiro tried again and relaxed when Keith allowed the touch, their fingers lacing together. “I’m upset too.” 

Keith allowed him to be pressed close, face squished to Shiro’s broad shoulder in a comforting gesture nearly as old as their relationship. For a moment Keith wondered if Shiro just didn’t want to see his insincerity. He had to know. “You are?” 

“Of course I am.” If he was truthful, the emotion wasn’t clear, since Keith could  _ hear  _ his megawatt smile. Shiro took a deep breath, whining, “I wanted to be Takashi Kogane.” 

It was ridiculous enough to pull a laugh out of Keith. He quickly stifled the rest of his giggles into his husband’s chest. “Your nickname wouldn’t make any sense then.” 

“Oh, I guess not.” 

“My vote would have been to hyphenate.”

“We can probably get that changed.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” Shiro promised. He carded his free hand through Keith’s dark locks before palming at his cheek and smiling when Keith pressed into the affectionate touch. “Renewing our vows, or something along those lines.” 

“The legality of this all seems really shifty.” Not that he was going to complain too harshly. Their friends were just doing what they felt was best at the time. Still, Keith sighed as he pressed a kiss to the hand cupping him so tenderly. 

“Space magic?” Shiro offered.

Keith playfully bit his palm in retaliation and earned kisses for his trouble. 

It wasn’t much for a discussion regarding their sudden marital status but both of them were too tired to approach it further. When the lights were off and the both of them curled together, Keith thought that would be the final word as they drifted to sleep. He pulled himself closer to settle in and smiled just a little when he felt the brush of Shiro’s lips against the nape of his neck. 

Intimacy was hard-won these last few days, and Keith ached for it just as much as Shiro. 

He waited for more -- was about to roll onto his back and ask sweetly for it -- when he heard the unmistakable slowing of Shiro’s breath and the subsequent soft snore. So much for that. But even then, Keith couldn’t help the fondness that surged through him, nor the disbelieving chuff that escaped him. 

That sugary sweet feeling would have been welcome to stay the whole night -- Keith wanted to clutch it tight to his chest and soak it into his bones until they rotted from it, honestly -- but was torn from it when he woke in the dark with Shiro’s gaze resting heavily on him. 

Those gunsteel gray eyes so rarely drew an unpleasant feeling from him. This was one of those moments, unfortunately. “What’s wrong?” Keith asked, voice cracking from a mixture of concern and residual sleep. 

“I can’t sleep.” A further sign of distress -- Shiro wasn’t even pretending to be fine. His voice was quiet, a whisper in the night. Keith made to roll over and turn the lights on, to see these monsters aglow, but stopped when Shiro placed a hand on his shoulder. “No,” he said, “leave the lights off.”

Nightmares shared their bed often enough. It was part of the job for Jaeger pilots; a haunted prerequisite before other pilots would offer acknowledgement. Whether the pilot saw their own death or the death of the millions they were tasked with protecting was unique to each person. 

As someone that woke up next to Shiro whether he had a good night or a bad one, Keith knew exactly which form Shiro’s nightmares took. He had never once come from those with the calm expression he wore now. 

Keith would weather this new threat. He couldn’t do anything about the nightmares, but maybe he could do something about this. 

Shiro spoke first. “Why were you upset earlier?” 

“What?” Keith sat up, confused. 

“Earlier, when we talked about marriage -- you seemed upset.” Out of everything on his mind, Keith couldn’t imagine why _ this _ was what had dragged them out of sleep at midnight, possibly later. “Was it because I betrayed you? Do you…do you not want to be married any longer?” 

Ah. 

“I wanted to call you my husband before anyone else did.” Keith said. “That right was taken from me.” 

The brutal honesty was enough to break Shiro’s carefully sculpted expression -- his lips lifted in the barest upturn of a smile. Whatever scenario Shiro had braced himself for, it wasn’t  _ that _ . “Oh,  _ Keith _ .” 

“The ceremony, the gathering of our friends and family, even the vows --” Keith continued, “all of that can be remade. We  _ will  _ have our moment, just how you want it, we will, once all of this is done.” It wasn’t so hard to do since they had never been given the chance to think it over, anyway. “If you think I don’t want you as my husband, then you don’t know me at all.” 

“But with Honerva…” Shiro turned away from Keith’s overtly honest gaze, scrubbing his prosthetic hand over his eyes in an attempt to hide. “I don’t know how she controlled me. There’s a chance it could happen again.”

“I don’t know either, but what you did was not a betrayal, Shiro. Whether or not you want to feel guilty about it is up to you.” Their hands found each other on top of the covers and held fast, welcoming the heat that collected between them. “What happened has led us here, to the end of something greater than we ever thought. We’ve been recruited to stop a galactic tyranny because of  _ you _ , Shiro. Tell me how that is a betrayal.” 

Shiro faltered. Keith took this small victory for what it was and pressed closer, enough that when their thighs brushed together Shiro pulled him into his lap instead of shying away. He settled there, content as they closed the gap of space between them, forehead to forehead as he listened to their shaky, shared breaths. 

“We will ask Honerva when we see her again.”

It was the best thing Keith could offer at the moment other than a promise to kill the witch. Just like most things in life, the thought of disappointing Shiro’s tenderhearted disposition was what stopped Keith from ‘showing’ the Kogane family heirloom knife to anyone deserving it. 

As it was, Shiro could stand to look happier. Keith licked his lips, mouth dry as he whispered, “Until that moment, I don’t want you to waste a single thought on something as impossible as me not loving you.” 

Not for the first time, Keith wished Shiro had let him flip the lights on. As it was, he could only guess that the heaving of Shiro’s chest meant he was trying to hold back the big, open sobs only Keith was allowed to witness. 

“I’m sorry.” Shiro broke, his disbelieving awe melting with each word of adoration until he was nothing but a trembling mess beneath Keith. “I’m so sorry.” 

Keith hated being right.

If this was how Shiro wanted to atone, so be it, but Keith would not leave room for a misunderstanding of this magnitude between them. Keith said nothing more, just pulled Shiro close and felt the blunt tips of his prosthetic fingers digging into the arch of his spine like a silent apology. 

The darkness was somewhat more welcome after that, leaving them to rely on nothing other than the contact that was so desperately craved. When the tears stopped and silence once more suffocated the room, Keith was pulled from it by the hesitant kiss to his lips.

It was late when they stopped pretending to try to go back to sleep -- both of them were too wired now and dawn was close enough that they wouldn’t suffer too terribly. Shiro steered them towards something lighter and talked about what few preferences he had for their wedding, listening politely when Keith agreed or offered an alternative. 

Simplicity appealed to them both, though that in itself was impossible given how many friends and family were to be invited. 

Shiro wanted to write his own vows. Keith was less sure, unable to believe he would manage anything worth saying. Scoffing, Shiro turned on his side and looked his husband over. “Are you kidding?” 

Keith frowned, affronted by the incredulous tone. “No?” 

“Keith Shirogane,” the sigh was there, ever present, though Shiro finally smiled, “I love you, but you have to know that you’re a hopeless romantic.” 

Shiro blinked over at Keith, his cheek pressed to the dark bedsheets, hair splayed out in picturesque perfection looking the epitome of innocence, but still turned instantly red when Keith shot up and clambered over him. “K-Keith?!” 

“Say it again.” Keith demanded as he rucked up his sleep shirt. 

It took a moment, but Shiro caught the thread between Keith’s shirt falling to the ground and him rising to his knees to shuck off his briefs. “Keith Shirogane.” He hummed happily when Keith grabbed both sides of his face and met him halfway for a blistering kiss though his breath caught when Keith bit at his bottom lip, pulling just a touch too hard as he moved back. “Baby…”

“Our talk was -- it was good, right? Can I do this for you?” Keith asked without a sense of shame, rushed even as he dipped his fingers under Shiro’s own briefs to feel overheated skin. 

“Yes, Keith.” That he was asking for permission was sweet, really, but it was as unnecessary as Shiro’s earlier apologies. “C’mon, husband. Fuck me.” Shiro absolutely had no right to look that smug against the pillows, teeth bared in a smile and eyes filled with love, immaculate, so Keith righted things by flipping him over on his chest. 

Shiro yelped when he hit the bed again, his “ _ K-Keith _ !” a mere wheeze of a response. It melted into laughter when Keith apologized by kissing the nape of his neck, but the urgency of this heat wasn’t something Keith could or would explain so he let Shiro giggle instead. 

Those giggles turned to breathless moans the moment Keith spread him open and fucked against him, rutting shamelessly into the curve of his ass. Shiro arched his back into the motions, eager for it, for Keith, for more, breathless the longer they went. 

Distractions were easy when it came to Shiro -- for all the experience he had under his belt, he still managed to act like a blushing virgin whenever Keith worked to undo him with his hands, tongue, or cock. Sometimes it earned unamused grumbling from Keith, but most of the time he found the show of it endearing. After all, Keith was the one who was supposed to be faltering in his motions, unsure and untested.

That was hardly ever the case. The closest Shiro got to seeing that side of his partner was the one time he lightly suggested they try roleplaying -- Keith wasn’t so shy after he had Shiro’s pants wrapped around his thighs and his armor scattered across the room, mouth biting down as the Prince fucked his Paladin.

Even if this was a known dance, that didn’t change the revelry of it. Lovemaking sometimes fell to fucking, and fucking sometimes softened to lovemaking. Keith knew this was going to remain unabashedly carnal when all he could think about was spreading Shiro’s ass and watching him tremble. 

Shiro’s skin always flushed dark at the first sign of affection and Keith always loved to coax it even more with lovebites. The salty taste of skin never bothered Keith -- not when it was Shiro he got to dig his teeth into. He got a shaky groan for his trouble and a redoubling of their insistent grind. “I want this too.” Shiro gasped into the sheets, thighs trembling as Keith continued to refuse him any kind of release. “Keith, please…!”

“That’s not my name tonight, sweetheart.” By all accounts, Keith felt ridiculous just saying that, knew Shiro should be laughing at him for trying to make something so corny sound hot, but Shiro didn’t even fucking flinch. 

“Fuck me, Keith Shirogane!” 

They had both agreed on a hyphenation of their last names, but this was a hell of a convincing argument. 

By the time Keith finished fucking into Shiro’s eager heat and coaxing the both of them into blinding orgasm, it was already close to four AM -- and there really wasn’t much reason to try to catch two hours of sleep, no matter how many times Shiro claimed he could fall into REM. A shared shower didn’t eat enough time or provide them with anything profound to discuss, so instead Keith decided to play devil’s advocate by playing Shiro’s own game. 

“Takashi Kogane,” Keith started, sprawled out naked and wet on their shared bed, “I was thinking--” 

Admittedly, Keith thought he would get a bit further into his teasing than literally five words, but he was nothing if a team player. 

The night bled into dawn, a warm mix of candy-pink and cherry-red as the sun peeked over the horizon and washed their room in light that Keith had ached for hours prior. As it was now, he did appreciate the sudden clarity that came with being able to see his husband snapping his hips inside at a brutal pace.

“There, husband.” Keith whispered, wildly close to the edge of his second orgasm as it was fucked into him. “Yes, yes, there,  _ fuck! _ ” 

Another shower to clean up led to a lazy third round, but Keith claimed that didn’t count because Shiro’s ass was part of a complete breakfast.

Then the morning came and they were reminded that there was still the Kaiju to deal with. 

Out of everything that was happening on the base, Keith wasn’t sure how the giant fucking Kaiju was overlooked. No one had harmed it as per their initial, achingly specific request, but no one knew what to do with it either other than pass off the problem until Keith was once more left to deal with the damage. 

There was irony to be found when standing before the creature with a kiddy pool filled with raw meat next to him. 

This Kaiju was exponentially smaller than any the  _ Jaegers _ had fought, hardly the size of one of the Humpback whales that visited their coast during their seasonal migration. But Keith could remember the pup’s mom back in the pocket reality clearly enough and knew it wouldn’t be long before it started to crave more than what they could feasibly offer. “So.” Keith crossed his arms and looked up, up, up, to where the Kaiju watched him with inquisitive golden eyes. “You hungry...buddy?”

A blue tongue lolled out of the Kaiju’s muzzle, long and horrifyingly sparkly and dripping with saliva. Hungry, indeed. But still refusing to move. Keith wasn’t sure what the creature was waiting for, but got the hint when it whined, high-pitched enough to make his ears ring. “C’mon, come eat.” Against his best rationale, Keith stepped even farther away from the inflatable and gave a short whistle for command. The Kaiju  _ looked  _ kind of like a dog, so why not try to treat it like a dog? The fact that this verbal command worked and set the Kaiju launching into the pool of meat didn’t even make Keith flinch. 

Fucking space magic. 

A glob of raw meat hit Keith’s cheek with a wet slap as he gave the Kaiju another look over. In his experience, most Kaiju were big enough to dwarf skyscrapers and covered in scaly or reinforced flesh to make traveling through water easier. The pocket reality had held all different kinds of Kaiju but the majority of them held true to those two rules. This Kaiju was no exception, really, but the tufts of blue fur that stuck out along it’s head and limbs were new. 

That, plus the long muzzle and forward-facing ears, made it look more dog-like than anything aquatic. But enough of its body was covered in dark blue skin that Keith knew it would find swimming just as easy as any of its Kaiju brothers and sisters. 

The blue fur was maybe for...show? For mating purposes? Keith couldn’t guess -- he had failed biology for a reason. 

“Ah, Keith! There you are.”

Keith turned to the call of his name and gave Coran a small nod in greeting as he approached. The older man slowed to a stop beside him, easily falling into a parade rest with his hands clasped behind his back, head tilted to the side as they both watched the Kaiju gorge itself. “I see you’ve managed to feed the wee beastie. Thank you for that. As friendly as the chap looks, I’ve not wanted to get too close. You see enough Kaiju in your life and it’s just a gut-response to flee in terror, complete with an unprofessional scream.” 

“Sure.”

Couldn’t blame Coran for that kind of response, not when the Kaiju in question raised its bloody maw and stared at them before going back to eating. Keith realized there was only so much Honerva’s word was good for. He ached for a knife in hand. 

“Well I come bearing gifts for you.” Into Keith’s hands Coran placed a detailed itinerary and a carefully wrapped muffin. “The itinerary is from myself and Allura -- the muffin is from your husband, with love. He said you might be hungry for ‘real food’.” 

Keith choked on air and waved off Coran’s concerned gaze. There was no way he was going to tell the Base father-figure that his breakfast had been Shiro’s ass. “Thanks, Coran. I’ll set up a meeting for us to review it later. I still need to figure out what to do with this.” This being the giant Kaiju that was now eating the plastic pool. 

Wait.

“Uh.” He hadn’t seen the Kaiju finish the meat, much less start tearing into the plastic, but the unmistakable ‘pop’ as the air was released was enough to draw attention of all those near enough to hear. Keith felt like he was watching the family dog try chocolate for the first time. “Should we...stop it?” 

“An excellent question.” Coran said, effectively his version of ‘fuck if I know’. 

They watched in companionable silence as the Kaiju demolished the rubber-ducky printed pool inflatable in record time, until all that was left of the meal was the blood soaked into its maw and the stray piece of plastic hanging between two razor-sharp teeth. 

It huffed, seemingly content, and rolled onto its side with an additional lazy whine. A few loose scales popped off as it wiggled along the concrete flooring, which Keith immediately honed in on just because he knew Pidge would want those ASAP. He wasn’t about to go darting next to the satisfied Kaiju, though. Keith was rash, but he also liked having ten fingers. 

“Do we know how long the Kaiju will be staying?” Coran asked once the Kaiju splayed out and started to snore. 

“I think it’s supposed to come back with us to the pocket reality. Honerva said it would act as a beacon for her to locate us with.” Not that Keith understood how any of that worked, but it did line up with the last time they had been pulled into the Pacific Rim. 

Coran gave an understanding nod and then proceeded to say, “We should name it.” Like that was just something they did. 

Well, okay, to be fair they did name some of the Kaiju. 

“I’m really not the person to ask about that.” Keith deflected with a frown. There was no need to feel irritated about the suggestion, but Keith felt his blood boil despite actively trying to calm himself down.

“Then I’ll add it to our meeting objective.” A few button presses later and the file in Keith’s arms beeped with confirmation. They didn’t have time for a flippant thing like naming the messenger Kaiju! But Coran looked pleased with himself, orange mustache twitching with amusement, until all the color drained from his expression when the Kaiju stood. “Oh dear.” 

A few steps forward, and Keith suddenly found himself face to face with the Kaiju’s blooded muzzle. It whined again, asking in the way only an alien incapable of speech could, and flopped against the ground until Keith was looking at golden eyes instead of white fangs. If this was any other animal, Keith wouldn’t have hesitated to run his hand along the blue fur and coax his fingers through it in a soothing manner.

This was a Kaiju, though, and Keith had just watched it eat a whole kiddie pool full of raw meat and then the pool itself.

_ Pet. _ A voice whined, loud and clear through Keith’s mind. It didn’t feel normal, though, and the fuzziness of the intrusion made Keith shake his head. He stumbled back and the voice whined even louder.  _ PET. _

“Who’s saying that?” Keith demanded to the startled group of people that had gathered close. 

“Who’s saying what, Keith?” Coran asked, stepping closer to the other man now that there was a greater distance from the Kaiju. 

_ Keef. Keef.  _ The voice chanted, over and over until Keith realized the Kaiju was moving again, squirming on the floor with its tongue dragging against the concrete and leaving trails of glittering saliva. It looked oh so smug as it yipped and pushed its muzzle against Keith’s closest hand.  _ Mine.  _

…

“I like Kosmo.” Shiro was taking to their newfound family member better than Keith was and for that he was both simultaneously glad and annoyed. The final debrief had kicked off with a ‘Name That Kaiju’ voting contest, and though there were plenty of good suggestions -- Keith’s assurance that the Kaiju wouldn’t reveal his name being one -- Hunk’s choice ultimately won. “You can’t just call an alien species that has chosen you as his pack leader ‘it’, Keith.” 

Nothing came to mind in terms of an eloquent response, so Keith just continued to frown as they both packed. He was pulled from his sour mood only when Shiro pressed a sloppy, exaggerated kiss to his cheek as he passed to grab the medkits lined up on the dresser. “You’re the worst.” 

“You love me.” Shiro taunted right back, giggling when Keith took the bait and tackled him down on the bed. 

“I do.” Unashamed, unabashed, Keith let the long hours of the day melt from his weary body as he rested his head on his husband’s chest. “So much that it hurts, sometimes.” 

They let that rest where it settled between them, not a threat but rather something shockingly intimate, even moreso than any whispered confession late at night. 

Shiro cleared his throat first. “When we first Drifted, I had hoped it would show you how much you mean to me in ways I could never articulate. How important you are to me -- how I wanted our future to grow, even if it was only for a short time.” 

Swift fingers plucked at the frayed ends of Shiro’s nightshirt. “I’ve never been loved like this before.” Familial love was something Keith did not lack, as a child nor as an adult. But romantic love was something new, so raw at times that it overwhelmed him in the best ways possible. Past partners had scraped at the edges of love, asking for reciprocation Keith could never return. But there had never been a hesitancy to Shiro -- if they lived long enough to enjoy life in its fullest, Keith imagined there never would be any. 

Shiro never left an exchange one-sided, that was for sure. It had been Keith that ultimately taken that first step, but only because he realized that Shiro had offered something as life-altering as love long, long ago, even before that first thermos of coffee. 

And yet.

They were to leave for the pocket reality tomorrow -- a room full of somber faces had decided that mere hours ago, friends and family alike.  _ Go be with your loved ones,  _ Shiro had said, eyes never leaving Keith. There was no need to say what remained unspoken. 

Their fingers tangled together as Shiro lifted his hand, just to press a gentle kiss to the band that encircled his finger in a ring of black. “In sickness and in health.” He whispered. 

“To love and to cherish.” Keith continued, breathless. 

“Through this life and the next.” 

For an impossible moment, as Keith closed his eyes to sink into his husband’s embrace, he imagined their world as it was originally designed -- devoid of war and fear towards monsters that were never meant for their reality. He wondered, as their vow was sealed with a single kiss, if the stars would shine a bit brighter in that world. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely my favorite of the four chapters! I'm so happy to finally be sharing this with ya'll.  
> There's a lot of hand-waving when it came to things I wanted to see in canon, so please forgive how self-fulfilling this chapter is. And the fight scenes. Because...whew. Enjoy!

The entire Base was up and alive at 0400 hours, well before any human should be required to wake. Keith was still nursing his cup of coffee when he saw Coran escort in the other Pilots, hiding his smile when he was suddenly struck by the imagery of a momma duck with her ducklings. 

Yup. Definitely too early to be awake.

From the snort beside him, Keith could tell Shiro had the exact same train of thought and chugged the remainder of his coffee to hide his terribly fond smile. 

“Pilot Shirogane and Shirogane, good to see you.” Coran, for all his cheery demeanor, looked like he hadn’t slept at all.

Keith glanced at the row of Jaeger Pilots and noted the same of them. Only his mother and Kolivan looked mentally ready for the task at hand. 

“Morning.”

His cup was long empty, so Keith set it aside and moved into position with Shiroright beside them. As the only two that had made it through the Pacific Rim and lived to tell the tale, their presence was the only reassurance that this wasn’t completely insane. Well, them and Kosmo, who was lying sprawled out on the concrete with a popped tire as his breakfast. 

Krolia and Kolivan were the first to greet him, less weary of his early morning bite than the others. Keith welcomed the hug from his mother, curling into her embrace as eagerly as he ever had.

“I’m proud of you, kit.” She whispered quietly against his ear.

Keith groaned with embarrassment even knowing no one else heard, but all attempts to pull from the Mom Hug were for naught. He remained where he was pinned until Krolia showed a bit of restraint. 

“I can’t believe you took up flying again after I left. You’ve told me the story countless times, but still…” The smile on Krolia’s face was so bittersweet, Keith didn’t dare press any further. Instead, he turned to his Uncle. “It’s an honor to fly with both of you.” 

“This is not how I wanted to see you in a _Jaeger_ ,” Kolivan said, voice low and even as always, “but if this is a journey we must take, then I want to do my part. It is the Kogane way.” 

“What about the Tex way?” It was a question begging to be asked, to allow the other half of Keith to get some closure too. Krolia smiled a bit more brightly at him for it. 

It took Kolivan a moment longer to compose an answer, but when he did, he too managed a slight upturn of his lips. “I think your father would tell you to ‘kick some ass’.” It was enough to pull a laugh from Keith, though he really just wanted to cry. 

“We’ll make him proud, kit.” Krolia promised. 

“Yeah. Yeah, we will.” He agreed as Shiro rubbed along his lower back in reassurance. 

Krolia parted from them after pressing a kiss to both Keith and Shiro’s temples, Kolivan offering his own brand of affection in the form of a firm handshake. Then they were gone, off to suit up to ride _Cherry Bomb._

Next was Hunk, with his Jaeger partner...uh.

Keith did not know this woman. 

She apparently knew him, because the level of excitement he was hit with did not befit meeting a random stranger. Keith tried to pick up his dignity and a bit of quick wit as she thrust out her hand. “Pilots of the _Black Lion_ , it is my absolute honor to meet the both of you! My name is Romelle Pollux. I’m so very sorry we did not have a chance to meet earlier, but I’m -- well I’m just fresh out of training myself.” 

Keith nearly saw red at that and whipped his head to glare at Hunk and was only stopped from committing murder when he saw the man’s hands up already in the universal sign for mercy. “Dude, do not start on me. Romelle was hand picked by your mom.” 

“Krolia?” Shiro tried to wipe the disbelief from his face before Romelle could see but her own bubbly energy deflated regardless. All three men scrambled to reclaim it in some minute way, but Romelle just shook her head of blonde hair. 

“No, no, I can see why you might be nervous. I didn’t believe in myself, either, before Krolia took me as her protege. But please believe me when I say that I am no helpless Pilot. This is not my first time in _Yellow.”_ There was no trembling recruit here -- Keith saw that now, saw why his mother would choose to give her a means to channel that passion. 

It was a path Keith was all too familiar with. “Welcome to the team, Romelle.” He offered as an olive branch, along with his best attempt at an early-morning smile. “I’m excited to see how you and Hunk pilot together.” 

She offered her own bubbly-once-more smile in return and glanced to Hunk. “We fit into the role of Guardian fairly well.” 

“Mostly because we’re the last to a fight.” Hunk sighed. “But don’t underestimate our wide-shot cannon! It packs a mean punch when you need it to.” 

“We’ll keep that in mind.” Shiro promised with an amused smile of his own. “Go suit up, you two. We have a long day ahead of us.” 

Though Romelle left with a cheery salute that startled both Shiro and Keith, they were reassured by Hunk’s nervous, “Yeah, she does that,” before he hurried after his partner. 

“...Krolia.” After enough time passed, Shiro spoke for the both of them, his tone still surprised. 

“Don’t.” Keith warned and stole the rest of the coffee from Shiro’s cup. “If my Mom trained her, she could rip us apart.”

He watched with amusement as Shiro closed his eyes, thought it over, and finally nodded in defeat. He took advantage of the distraction to steal his husband’s cup, laughing when Shiro pawed at him in return. 

“Ugh. Nevermind, Pidge, let’s turn around.”

Keith was given momentary reprieve as Shiro ignored him to greet his incoming best friend. Matt and Shiro met in a hug, so Keith took his chances and pulled Pidge into one too.

“Keith, stop it. My wife is watching.” Pidge grumbled, shoving playfully until Keith finally untrapped his favorite little gremlin. 

“I still can’t believe the first thing you told me was about how you grew an inch, and not how you were a _Jaeger_ Pilot with your brother _or_ how you got _married._ ” Keith was afforded a little more time to tease Pidge since Shiro and Matt looked a little weepy in each other’s arms.

Pidge just rolled her eyes. “That’s why I married her; so I have both kinds of genius.”

They both spared a look over at Leifsdottir, too busy nose-deep in final takeoff notes to pay attention to them at the moment. Watching Pidge’s expression soften with love, Keith couldn’t help but wonder if that was how lovesick he looked, too. 

“I’ll bring you home safe.” He promised. 

It must have sounded like the empty promise it was because Pidge didn’t look even remotely convinced. “I’ll return when I’ve made home safe for her, too.” 

Keith stared at his friend and marveled in the woman she was, had always been, and nodded in mutual agreement. They were startled from the somber thought only when Matt threw his arm around Keith’s shoulder and dragged him in closer with a fiendish grin. “If you need _Quest_ and her sneaky shots, feel free to let us know. We’ve really perfected the cloaking device these last few days and I’ve been dying to test it out in the heat of battle.” 

That snapped Pidge right back into her sparkly-eyed, tech driven self. “When we get back, you two need to help me get clearance to add that tech to all the _Jaegers_! Dad won’t let us because he says we’ll lose them -- which was one time, c’mon-- or use them for ‘Holt child evil’, whatever that means.”

Keith knew exactly what that meant. He shared an uneasy look with Shiro before turning back to the puppy eyes waiting for them. 

Shiro, ever the diplomat, came to his rescue. “When we return, I’ll see what we can do. You know we won’t really need _Jaegers_ after this is over, though?” 

“What are you talking about!” The twin yell startled Shiro back into Keith, who held onto his hips for moral support. They both watched, wide-eyed, as the Holt siblings scoffed and shook their heads in utter dismay.

“‘We don’t need them,’ he says.” Matt mocked. 

“The _Black Lion_ was able to blast through the atmosphere with her wings and you don’t think that’s necessary to keep around?” Pidge added. “You’re thinking small picture, boys, I need you to open your eyes a bit.” 

“You think we can use the _Jaegers_ for space travel?” Ever fond of the great galactic beyond, Shiro shot his excited gaze to Keith, then back to the Holts, smile bursting wide. 

It did stand to reason that if _Black Lion_ could grow wings and fly, the other Jaegers modeled after her could as well. Keith hadn’t thought that far ahead, honest, more concerned with their current predicament. “We need to finish this fight before we talk about space exploration…though that would be cool.” He offered, bumping his shoulder against his husband’s. It seemed like so long ago, but Keith was glad they were both able to smile over the shared memory of the initial test run for _Black._

“We’ve already been to a pocket reality. What’s a bit of space?” Shiro grinned. 

“Well you might not be worried, but the rest of us are!” Here came Lance and Allura, hand-in-hand as they approached the circle of friends. “We couldn’t sleep last night at all…” 

Allura’s small nod confirmed. “I’m excited to see what lies beyond our own perception of reality, but. Yes, I couldn’t sleep. We ended up having to play Monsters and Mana just to relax.” 

“I couldn’t sleep much, either.” Pidge admitted, looking vulnerable again. She swept her gaze around the room and sighed. “I don’t think any of us did.” 

“Not even us.” Maybe not for the same reason as the others, but they all relaxed when Shiro confessed having the same issue. 

Matt looked around the ring of somber expressions and huffed with amusement. “If I had known that we were all going to be tossing and turning last night I would have suggested a party or something.” The ease of the offer earned him a collective chuckle, and the tensions instantly soothed just a touch. 

“There’s no team I’d rather be with right now.” Keith made sure to meet each of his friends’ gazes and gave them a nod. “Voltron won’t know what hit ‘em.” 

“Are we doing an inspirational gathering?” Romelle called from across the room. “Hunk! They’re encouraging each other; hurry, we must join!” 

To Keith’s utter horror, the entire crew gathered together, nervous smiles begging for a bit of reassurance. Everyone was scared of this new unknown, even if they weren’t falling into the battlefield themselves. If Honerva’s plan failed -- if the Pilots failed -- then the Earth would be subjected to enemies worse than the disoriented Kaiju. 

Keith was never one for inspirational speeches. When Shiro pressed his hand to Keith’s lower back and stepped forward, head held high and gaze intent, the world stopped to listen. 

“I want to thank everyone for gathering here this morning.” Shiro swept his gaze across the gathering of tired faces, smiling just a touch in a look reminiscent of the Garrison Golden Boy. “These have been a hectic few days for all parties involved -- your hard work was critical for the battle to come. Though Kaiju no longer flood our shores, that is only a temporary stave. An unseen force has damaged Earth and her people in ways we can never recover. Today, a team of Pilots have promised to you to fight for a future where Earth can heal as she was meant -- where her people no longer have to fear for what more will come.”

“...The smartest man I know once told me, ‘If you get to worried about what could go wrong, you might miss a chance to do something great’.” Shiro wet his lips and cast his gaze out to the crowd, saw Colleen and Sam Holt there, holding each other with faces white with fear for their children. “I promise you all here, and now -- this will be Earth’s moment. We will be victorious. We will reclaim our home. We will never again live in fear of the unknown.” 

The crowd, caught in his undeniable courage and strength, cheered, hands raised in the air as Shiro declared,

“Go! Be great.” 

…

“You’ve done well to come this far.” Honerva watched as the Pilots gathered along the edge of the precipice, all as stunned by the cluster of Kaiju as Keith had been during his first trip to the pocket dimension. He watched from a distance with Honerva and Allura, long abandoned by the others for the spectacle of it all. The crystalline walls and deep, foreboding emptiness of the cave was almost a welcoming sight at this point, but only because it was a distraction for what lay ahead. 

Keith was more interested in Allura’s reaction, honestly, as she had nearly cried when she saw the lot of them appear. She was more reserved now, perhaps just for the reassurance of the group, but the twitch in her long ears gave away the happiness building inside.

“You could come with us.” He suggested after a moment. They both watched Kosmo dive off the edge and into the water, sending up a huge wave that splashed the Pilots with the spray. “With the Kaiju gone, there will be nothing left for you here.” 

“Mm.” It wasn’t the resolute excitement Keith had expected, so he turned and watched her smile grow into something sad, mournful. “I’ve no idea if there is a home for me to return to, Keith.” 

“So, what? You won’t even try?” The laughter of their friends was off putting against his urgent tone, but neither of them could bring the conversation to a dead stop. 

“We are tied to this realm. There is no leaving.” Allura turned her head away, quiet in her surety. “This was the cost of our sacrifice.” 

Before Keith could try another tactic to get her to agree to joining them, Lance was bounding over, his concerned gaze enough to inform the both of them that he had caught the thread of their conversation. They both turned to him in greeting, but Allura looked physically pained as Lance slowed to a stop before her. 

“Queen Allura.” He greeted her, voice soft. 

“Lance.” Her greeting was equally soft, though she could not bear to meet his gaze. 

“Correct me if I misunderstood something, but -- back in your reality, you were in love with Lance, yeah?” When Allura only weakly nodded, Lance took a deep breath and gently took her hand in his own. The action surprised both Keith and Allura, but she made no move to pull away, just looked up with wide eyes. “I made a promise to my Allura long, long ago that I would follow her across the universe.” 

“I think,” Lance squeezed her hand and gave a small, encouraging nod, “that the Lance waiting for you back home feels the same way.” 

Keith left them at that, feeling ever the outsider as Allura made her decision regarding the pocket reality. He fled to Shiro’s side and slid into the spot beside him with ease, watching as the other Pilots talked excitedly about the Kaiju and what this all entailed. Shiro’s hand smoothed up and down the back of his Drivesuit, ever soothing, until Honerva decided enough was enough and called them all together. 

She led them down a tunnel Keith hadn’t noticed during their first trip into the pocket reality, deep enough into the cave that he could feel the nervous energy from the other Pilots. Honerva wouldn’t kill them this late in the game, though. 

Probably.

Eventually they hit another cavern, small in size but only because it was completely filled by a huge black and purple _Jaeger_ . But it looked different -- there was no viewport and the thin frame would crack easily under a panicked Kaiju’s blow. While Keith appreciated the sleek, war-like design reminiscent of the _Black Lion_ , he frowned at the impracticality of it. He stepped closer when Honerva led them further inside, to the feet of the beast, where it curled up like an abandoned child. 

Keith was just trailing his hands over the delicate glass plating of the winged circlet when she said, “We will move the essence of the White Lion from my own creation. With it, you will be able to fight Voltron and win.” 

“This elusive White Lion...is in here?” Hunk, like everyone else, was confused. But Honerva only nodded, undeterred by their blank stares. 

“The White Lion is not the same as your metal monsters….he was a cosmic spirit that guarded untapped power from evil hands. When I ripped him from his resting place and bonded him to my own armor, that power allowed me to rip open realities. This power will allow you to achieve great things, as well.” The hand that stroked the dark armor was slow, revenant, as if Honerva truly did regret her actions. “Once I free the White Lion, it will ultimately be his choice to join you. I cannot force him again.” 

Hot panic flushed through Keith at the thought of all this being for naught, but Shiro stepped forward immediately, sure in himself and his team as he declared, “We will be worthy of his trust.” 

“Good.” Honerva gave them all a cool look. “Allura and I will do our best to support you from our realm but this fight remains yours. When you are ready, take your _Jaegers_ and make a ring in the pool outside. I will join you there to free the White Lion.” 

They had already come to terms with this battle prior to leaving Earth, so it was no surprise when only Keith and Shiro remained waiting for Honerva. The cavern felt too small and devoid of air, but Keith had made a promise to his husband and he intended on being supportive. 

“The Black Paladins.” She didn’t seem surprised to see both of them waiting. “What can I do for you?” 

“Before we leave for battle, I have to know -- why were you able to lead me to the Rift?” Shiro blurted, face hot with uncertainty. He grabbed for Keith’s hand and held tight, ever emboldened when Keith squeezed in acknowledgement. “How were you able to control me?” 

Honerva pursed her lips, obviously annoyed by the question. It may have seemed superfluous in the wake of galactic war, but it was no good to have one of the main Pilots distracted by something mundane. So she sighed a mother’s understanding.

“When you were swallowed by the Kaiju I sent to extract you and you were mixed with it’s blood, a genetic mutation occurred. Kaiju, as you know, are very reactive creatures. They can eat just about anything, produce healing elixirs, and thrum to the heartbeat of a planet. Altering your genetic makeup wasn’t even the creature’s intention, and yet here you are.” 

“I can control Kaiju because I know their minds. You have Kaiju in you, now. It is as simple as that.” There was absolutely nothing simple about having Kaiju DNA mixed into your body without your permission, but Shiro couldn’t even wrap his mind around it fast enough to form a coherent response. “I apologize for controlling you, Shirogane. Though...for all the pain this has wrought, I am glad that you are cured for it.” 

“Cured?” Shiro latched onto that, hungry for the one aspect he could understand. 

“Do you not feel it in your very essence? You are a healed man.” Honerva turned her gaze to Keith and for the first time, smiled genuinely. “I will do all I can to ensure you both live long enough to enjoy that fact. Now come -- your friends are waiting.”

They followed, but not before Keith dragged Shiro into a breathless kiss. 

War loomed over them in dark, threatening shadows, but for now there was a piece of light to pierce it.

They were to wait in their ring of _Jaegers_ as Honerva released the White Lion, but it didn’t exactly fall to plan. Keith and Shiro both had a vague expectation of the ‘galactic spirit’. They had already seen all kinds of crazy alien matter during their short time in the pocket reality, so what was one more horrid creature in their midst?

But, no. It wasn’t quite like that. 

All Kaiju that had lingered along the edge of the ring scurried off in a rush once Honerva started to channel her energy. The crystals in the cave walls shook and flashed in a multitude of colors once Allura joined in, the two of them creating a light show that Keith had to close his eyes against. He only dared open them again once the crackle of energy fell silent, and then wondered if he had gone blind. 

The entire cave was swallowed in black so dark that he could not even see his hand in front of his face -- could only hear the click and whirr of the mechanics as both he and Shiro moved in place nervously. Then -- there. A light in the middle of the ring flickered, slow at first and then ever brighter, shining so radiant Keith mistook it as a brilliant white. But as his vision adjusted, features started to form within the light, gone as soon as they started to sharpen into something recognizable. 

The light moved about the ring in a slow, hurried pace, touching each _Jaeger_ as it passed until finally it sat before the _Black Lion._

“Please.” He heard Shiro whisper into the darkness. 

The _Black Lion_ purred with his plea, as alive in that moment as either of her Pilots, and the White Lion answered in turn.

…

“I’m going to throw up.” Hunk moaned for the fifth time. It should have been annoying, really, but everyone was in the same boat; Hunk was the only one brave enough to risk saying it out loud. 

Keith flexed his hands against the controls and sighed in the minute relief that the familiarity of the motion brought him -- because nothing was familiar about this moment. 

The White Lion agreed to their quest and in turn had fused all five _Jaegers_ into one giant mech. 

Surprisingly, that was the least painful aspect. The rush of energy from the machines melding together into one powerful _Jaeger_ had been thrilling, especially with the sensation of the Drift linking all of the Pilots together into a cohesive mind. 

Dropping through the portal leading to Voltron -- not enjoyable. 

“We just have to follow Allura’s star map.” Pidge dragged her hand against her monitor until it popped up on everyone’s visors. “Everyone knows their role?” 

“It’s just like a regular _Jaeger,_ right?” Lance moved his controls forward with Allura and together they managed to make the mech kick out a stunning crescent. “ _Blue Shot_ is ready to go as the best leg a team could ask for.” 

“If you can consider five _Jaegers_ mashed into one a _normal Jaeger_ , then sure.” Matt muttered as he tested his controls with Pidge. 

“Team.” Everyone stopped their rambling to the sound of Krolia’s voice, as was usually the case. “We may seem connected now, but we will be going against a foe that has had time on their side. We cannot afford to be underprepared.” 

“Mom’s right. Keep your guards up and mind focused.” Keith added, trying not to blush when he felt the rush of pride from his Mom run through their connected Drift. “Don’t chase any rabbits.” 

“Your mind is the last place I wanna go, Keith,” came Lance’s dry grumble.

“Oooh, speak for yourself.” Romelle said.

Keith shot Shiro a wry smile, unsure how to take the sudden bickering that popped up over the comms -- but it fell to the wayside as Altea came into view.

As far as alien planets went, Keith couldn’t say he had ever seen many -- so maybe his frame of reference was skewed when he startled at the inherent beauty of Altea. Shiro’s shared amusement at the thought lingered as they took in the marvel before them, a mix of blue and green just like their own home, but unmistakable in the technological advances that surrounded the atmosphere in rings and glyphs. 

“It’s beautiful.” Pidge whispered through the comms. 

“We really aren’t in our own reality anymore,” Hunk answered, voice shaky, “are we?” 

“If Altea is a possibility in this realty, who is to say it is not true in our own? There might be an Altea hidden away that we’ve yet to find.” The warm pride that filled the _White Lion_ was definitely from Lance, awestruck as always by the words of his wife. At the moment, Keith was inclined to agree. An Altea of their own? If they survived this mess, he would love to take Shiro there. 

“Then a Voltron, as well?” Romelle asked.

“I think we _are_ Voltron, Romelle.” Lance dryly answered, in the middle of a sea of laughter. Keith could even imagine the woman turning pink with embarrassment, and shook his head fondly. 

“It just seems wrong for us to fight ourselves, then.” Came her answering pout.

“This Voltron fights to conquer.” Shiro said, voice low and steady. “This Voltron is not us.” 

The quiet affirmations that rang through the comm were the last things to be said -- because they were no longer alone. 

Voltron lay hidden in the shadow of Altea, cast in a darkness that blotted out even the stars that would otherwise illuminate the vastness of space. It was Lance that saw the absence of light first — calling out just a moment too late for them to claim initial action. The most they could do was brace for impact, Voltron ramming them at a speed that sent them out of control in a stomach-twisting spin. Though Voltron was smaller than the _White Lion_ , and faster too, the armor of the _White Lion_ was reinforced twice over, so the damage readout Pidge shouted was less than Keith expected. 

For all they had done to get the _White Lion_ , she was doing her damndest to keep them safe. 

“Form Sword!” Shiro yelled over the comms. “Form Shield!”

“Copy!”

“Sir!”

The other Pilots scrambled to follow their commands, and thankfully threw up their shield just as Voltron rounded back for another hit. Keith threw his right his hand forward with Shiro moving in sync directly beside him — the shield deflected Voltron’s own sword swing and clipped its head in a way that sent a reverberation back to the Pilots themselves. The adrenaline coursing through them helped them ignore the shooting pain to instead follow with a bite from their clutched blade. 

But Voltron was ready for this second blow and caught it mid-swing with its right hand. With no more power to push the blade through, they were caught frozen in action. A light glimmered above Voltron’s shoulders in warning. 

“They’re preparing for cannon blast!” Pidge yelled. 

“Let’s meet them halfway!”

Down came the shield, only to be replaced a moment’s breath later by a shoulder cannon of their own. Hunk and Romelle cried out as they pushed forward, spurred by the threat of battle, but it was too late — Voltron had their cannon ready in response, and the collision left both mechs spiraling back.

Alarms blared in the _White Lion_ in warning; another close hit like that and they were risking breaches in the shell.

“We need the shield back up. Pidge, Matt!” Keith yelled as they stabilized the back thrusters, righting themselves just in time to collide with Voltron again.

He was caught off in another yell, echoed by the whole team as Voltron pushed them through one of the silver rings of Altea, colliding in an explosion of technology and metal. The opposing mech made to shoot them in close quarters again, but the _White Lion_ had her hands up just in time, claws scrambling under the armor plating of Voltron’s head. 

Ripping out the right-most edge of Voltron’s guard was enough to buy them some breathing room. It retreated back into the shadow of the planet. 

“They’re not going to leave us alone for long.” Krolia warned.

Keith could only pant in answer -- the weight of commanding not one _Jaeger,_ but five total, was wearing on him faster than he thought. 

“Keith!” 

His head jerked up in response. “I’m here.”

“You are not piloting the _White Lion_ alone.” The loving, but stern tone of Krolia Kogane was something only she could manage. Keith cracked a smile. “Shiro, that goes for you as well.” 

“Yes ma’am.”

It was cute to listen to Shiro clear his throat, it really was, but Keith would have time to be charmed later. He had barely taken a breath to issue his next command when the shield was back up, and they kicked off from the planet’s ring. 

Voltron had long since rounded back to them, sword drawn, but the _White Lion_ was ready to bite back. The sword bounced off their shield again and again, the energy exploding off of each collision together, until an opening allowed the _White Lion_ to sink her own blade in. The Pilots cheered in victory as Voltron squirmed like a worm on a hook, only able to break free when its legs kicked up into the chest of the _White Lion_ and blasted backwards. 

For a moment, Voltron faltered and beat back a hasty retreat. 

Neither side of the battle had energy to immediately retaliate so they drifted there in dead space, eyeing each other up for the few breaths they could spare. Keith could feel the air burning in his lungs, could feel the strain running through the whole of the team as real as the sweat running down his temple.

When the droplet hit the visor of his helmet and bloomed in a cruel red, Shiro’s head snapped up. “ _Keith._ ”

He didn’t have the time to worry over a wound, said as much under his breath, panting as he pulled together a retaliation. Ideas flitted between the team as easily as their recycled oxygen, tingling with the sensation of a combined Drift, but Voltron beat them to the draw. In a bizarre display of goodwill, all of the weapons Voltron held disappeared in flashes of blue. The concentrated beam of blue that followed sent a panic through Keith and Shiro unlike anything they felt before -- without understanding how, they knew that they would all die if the shield was not pulled up in time. 

Matt and Pidge rushed to action, pulling up the shield just in time to watch it shatter under the impact, but still with enough energy to redirect the course of the beam. The Altean ring it sliced through burst in a cloud of explosions, then continued in an arch, destroying all it cut through. 

“No!” Allura screamed. “Altea will fall like this!” Allura gasped with dismay as the debris crashed into another lower ring and imploded into another cloud of fire.

There was no time to mourn -- Voltron was returning with the intent to kill. “We must push back!” Shiro urged, Allura’s sadness ripping into all of them at once through the Drift. “Keep clear of Altea!”

Keith didn’t know what he expected when he had been told to go fight in a space war, but he hadn’t ever considered the fact that they might lose — but for each step they gained, Voltron was there to drag them back two more, sword ripping at plating with a ferocity that rivaled the _White Lion’_ s own claws. The fighting was clear and precise despite the fact that one wrong move would leave them listing dead in space. Familiarity itched at the back of Keith’s mind, demanding recognition but it wasn’t until Voltron formed a second sword that Keith could place the source of said familiarity.

Not that it did much for _White Lion_. 

A poorly calculated strike with her blade meant that they only had time to block one of Voltron’s swords -- not both of them. The first strike was a decoy, discovered too late, when the second cleaved right through their left shoulder.

Keith felt the tear in his own muscle and bone and screamed. “Pidge!”

“Voltron is cutting them from _White Lion_!” Krolia warned, breathing heaving as she and Kolivan fought to keep the other sword from doing the same to the right arm. “We must shake them!”

But there was nothing to be done -- the neon blue of Voltron’s sword had done enough damage that their arm was now useless. 

“Pidge! Matt!” They all yelled into their communicators in the vain hope that their friends still lived, voices hoarse as they tried to coax any kind of reassurance from the now unresponsive limb.

But Voltron was pulling free, and they were down an arm. 

Panic washed through Keith before he could help it, breath choppy and heart exhilarating into dangerous territory. He felt _White Lion_ rumble around them in response, her plating shifting until a new option for defense came forward.

“The ring…!”

 _White Lion_ roared in approval as her Pilots punched forward as one, adding to her battle cry. In a rush, the circlet that surrounded her broke free and reformed in front of the mech as a barrier, spinning ever faster until all Keith could see was a blinding white light. 

If Voltron recognized the circlet, there was no time to stop the outward explosion of energy. 

The white light shot forward and swallowed Voltron whole, pushing it back, back, back, to crash into an Altean glyph painting the planet’s atmosphere. The white light burst forth from there, spreading ever farther in an echo of a lion’s roar, until everything ground to a halt. 

Voltron floated lifelessly. 

It was a momentary victory. 

“What the fuck was that?” Came Matt’s staticy voice a second later. 

“Matt!” The familiar voice was a welcome distraction for the moment. Keith watched as the haunted glaze disappeared from Shiro’s gunsteel gray eyes.

“Don’t scare us like that, you dick!” 

“This is no time for a fuzzy reunion!” Pidge reminded them in a hurry, her quick typing audible even through their beaten communication receiver. “Voltron won’t be down for long, even if we did manage to hit it -- that was some kind of sonic roar, but I can’t figure out how it shut off their energy supply…” 

“Pidge is right. This is our chance to end the fight.” _White Lion_ ’s remaining arm formed their own blue blade as soon as the circlet of white reattached. 

“Hold on. We can’t kill Voltron.” The fighting style this entire time had been enough to make Keith’s skin crawl, and he wasn’t about to let his suspicions go unconfirmed just because they were battle weary.

As expected, he was met with confusion.

“What do you mean?” Lance demanded. 

“Yeah! Who knows if we’ll get another chance?” 

“...This hesitation is unlike you, Keith.” 

“We don’t know when Voltron will come back online.” Keith all but pleaded, eyes closed as he squeezed his hands around the stem of their piloting apparatus. He had been thrown around enough now that whatever wound plagued him had split open further, leaving a trail of blood streaking down his face. He could taste the coppery wetness as he paused to collect his thoughts. 

The command sounded in his head first and foremost and with the way Shiro stilled in response Keith was afraid that Shiro would deny him this.

“I trust you.” Shiro whispered instead, approving with a nod.

“I’d like to remind you that we are currently _without use of White Lion’s arm!_ ” Pidge hissed. From the sound of Matt’s dark muttering, he had the same feeling about this suicide mission. “Are you fucking crazy?” 

“Maybe!” Keith refused to let his voice waver. “But we won’t know until we try. I need confirmation that we’re in this as a team.” 

The team was quiet for a moment, collecting their own thoughts until...

“All the way!” Confirmed _Yellow Guardian_.

“Until the end!” Confirmed _Blue Shot_.

“You’re crazy, but we’re fighting two mechs in space, so fuck it!” Confirmed _Sage Quest_. 

“Victory or Death!” Confirmed _Cherry Bomb_.

The last voice of reason fell to Shiro. He met Keith in his searching gaze and gave his nod of approval, but not before reaching across the gap and taking Keith’s hand. 

They dropped to Altea. 

…

There’s really no good place to fight on Altean ground. The world is filled with rich and vibrant ecosystem and cities teeming with life; but in the grand scheme of things Keith was more partial to sacrificing a field of juniper flowers than risking the lives of innocents. 

_White Lion_ knelt in the grass like a waiting bride, her head bowed as Keith punched open the hatch and climbed free. He had just hooked his foot over the rim when he heard the rumble of Voltron’s descent. In a last ditch effort to get a clear view of their enemy, Keith peeled off his Drivesuit’s helmet and tossed it to the ground, where it popped around when Voltron hit the field. 

Keith blinked away the ruined juniper petals that flew into the air and waited with his feet planted firmly on the ground. He didn’t know for sure, but he could feel Shiro’s eyes from inside _Black_ , as well as the eyes of all the other Pilots. The ghost Drift thrummed through his body like a live wire, pulsating, warm and lined with anxious energy. He felt the pounding of their hearts as one stop dead when Voltron, too, kneeled in the field and its jaw opened. 

_“Breathe.”_ Shiro’s voice echoed through Keith, but he _couldn’t_.

Not when the leader of Voltron was stepping out, obscured by the shadow of the mech’s maw. Even when they perched on the bottom step and gazed out, cloaked in gleaming black and white armor, Keith could not find the will to breathe, lest even the minute motion damn them all. 

Keith watched with rapt attention as the paladin removed their helmet and tucked it beneath their arm, an almost insultingly unimpressed look painted in their casual body language. There wasn’t much to make of it, initially, but once a gloved hand reached up and pushed back the obscuring dark locks, Keith’s heart dropped.

There were a few key differences between them -- for starters, this man had pointed ears and dark red markings on his face that bled into the scar that curved against his right cheek. He was older, too, with a haunted look in his violet eyes that Keith had yet to adopt. Otherwise they were the same -- dark hair, violet eyes, lithe frame. When the leader of Voltron materialized the Kogane blade in his hand and pointed it to Keith in a promise of death, it was so unnerving Keith nearly ran. 

The leader of Voltron was this reality’s Keith Kogane. 

Not-Keith was the one responsible for the war -- or at the very least, playing his part to support it. Keith’s heart was pounding so wildly in his chest that the ghost Drift was severed, leaving the battlefield to Keith, and Keith alone.

The Not-Keith jumped to the ground and approached with his blade, long legs covering the distance between them faster than it took for the original Keith to formulate any reasonable plan. He scrambled to grab his own blade and held it forward, panting hard when he noticed they were exactly alike, even down to the individual flaws along the edges.

“Who are you?” It wasn’t the most succent thing to ask, but it was all Keith could think of. 

The leader of Voltron did not stop until there was naught but 10 feet between them, breathing slowly through his nose before flashing a toothy snarl. Between that and the yellow sclera flooding his eyes, this reality’s Keith felt more like an ethereal creature than any equal of his own. 

“I am Akira Kogane, the Black Paladin of Voltron and Envoy for Empress Allura of Altea.” Even his voice was the same, aged forward a few years but unmistakably his own. “Tell me your name.” 

“I am Keith Kogane.” Keith could taste the blood against his lips again and fought to focus on that instead of the impossibility of the situation. “I am a Pilot of the _White Lion_ , sent here at the behest of Earth. I come from a reality plagued by the consequences of your empire.” 

There was no spark of surprise in Akira’s violet eyes, no, instead he lifted his gaze to the _White Lion_ herself. It was at this moment that Keith wondered if this was the first reality that had bothered to try and stop the Altean Empire from spreading further. 

“You fight well, but it is obvious that you are inexperienced, uncoordinated, and unprepared for the fight ahead. Continue this battle and you will die by my hand.” Akira word’s were soft, almost mournful, but it wasn’t until he turned back to Keith that he felt the weight of the threat there. “Would you fight me one on one in the hopes I spare your comrades?” 

“Would you surrender if I beat you, here and now?” Keith asked.

There was a beat of silence between them, but Akira finally nodded. 

Keith nodded too, with no other path forward. The ruined flowers underneath them stank of overripe fruit, nauseating as the scent caught in the air, released as the two pilots started to circle one another. “What of you?” Keith asked. “What if you win?” 

“Focus on the fight.” 

The first jab took Keith by surprise -- he yelled as the blunt of Akira’s palm smashed into his nose, breaking the bone in one swift move. Keith stumbled back, stunned, only for a hand to fist into his hair and drag him back, into the force of one, two, three knee strikes to his stomach. 

Here Keith had been expecting the cold, calculated fighting of Voltron to follow into their deathmatch -- and what a fucking idiot he had been. Keith writhed on the ground, heaving for his stolen breath, powerless against the hands on his throat. 

Their sole advantage had been in the mechs, where technology gave them equal standing. Here, on the ground, facing down a man who knew his life as no other could claim, Keith was inexperienced, uncoordinated, and unprepared.

Black spots were invading his vision when Akira dragged him up and threw him. The action of it puzzled Keith as he scrambled to stand, ripping up purple flowers between his fingers as his focus dipped, until he caught his breath and was allowed a moment. There was no sport to this fight -- and if Akira truly was him, then he craved a challenge. 

Keith stood and shakily wiped away the blood from underneath his nose. He spat out what had managed to pool in his mouth, hot and coppery, and found Akira waiting patiently. 

“I can see the desperation burning in your eyes.” The leader of Voltron had sheathed his blade, ready in wait should Keith actually provide a challenge. “You know that, were things different, you would be like me. You would win. But even if we are the same man, our realities shaped us differently.” Akira sighed at the finality of it and started to close the distance between them with slow, lazy steps. “Were you raised with love, Keith?”

“I was.” Keith bit out, just to watch Akira’s eyes grow wide with wonder. But it was smothered a moment later, letting Akira remain haunted. “I am not weak because of it.”

“No.” Once more, only a short distance separated them. Keith readied himself to fight, to scrape for his life and the lives of his family and friends, but Akira only shook his head. 

The pitying look was enough to send Keith into a fury, though he knew no good would come of it. He threw himself at Akira and swung uselessly, easily side-stepped, then used his momentum to round about and try again. Keith sucked in his breath and yelled, frustrated, as Akira continued to move from his grasp, until they were both where they had originally begun. 

Keith pulled his blade from where it fell on the ground and held it up, futile and desperate though he couldn’t see with the blood dripping into his eyes. “Our realities did shape us differently -- I would never kill and conquer like the Altean Empire has.” 

The blade was knocked from his hand so hard it made him startle back, only to be caught in place by Akira’s hand against the back of his head. Keith gasped, breathless and bloodied as Akira closed in to whisper. “No. But I do not kill and conquer for _her_ sake, Keith.” 

Those words echoed in the air, a final warning before Keith was well and truly ripped apart. Akira spared no hesitation now -- just beat him bloody, over and over, experience and hardship winning over any desperation Keith may have clung to earlier. He wheezed, lungs filled with blood, when he felt a blade pressed to his throat. 

Keith closed his eyes, ready for the final sting of death to claim him, Shiro’s name the last thing to taste his lips when they both heard it -- the peal of an incoming bullet. It grazed against Akira’s right cheek and ripped open the skin in a red burst, but even that was not enough to pull his blade from Keith’s throat. Instead he stood frozen, breathing heavy as his eyes sought out the source.

Once he found Shiro at the feet of the _White Lion_ , the blade was gone so fast it may as well have been imagined. Akira stared up at Shiro, violet eyes wide and full of awe, unconcerned with the gun aimed for him.

“Shiro?” It was breathless. 

They were too far away for Shiro to hear the excited whisper of his name, but Keith heard it and _knew_.

“Shiro!” He blurted, barely able to speak around the blood choking him. “Don’t you dare hurt him-- this was between you and me --” 

Akira shushed his pathetic growl with a snarl of his own then turned back to watch Shiro join them in the field. Keith could only hear the pounding of his feet and the rushed sound of his breathing, unable to even lift his head to watch Shiro’s approach. Then he was gathered up into a strong, familiar grasp, with wet tears pressed to his cheek.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t watch any more.” Fingers pressed gently to the bloom of red wrapped around his neck, his touch trembling as it moved down, then up, until Shiro cupped his cheek, holding Keith so tenderly he feared he would cry as well. “Keith, god, _Keith…_ ” 

Keith could barely see his husband with the one eyelid caked over with blood and dark bangs plastered to his skin, but he knew this was his Shiro, his alone, and sighed softly against the tough plating of his DriveSuit. Silence dragged for so long that he wondered if he had passed out from blood loss, and the comfort of Shiro’s arms was really just a dream. 

Long before Akira spoke, he heard the electric thrum of Shiro’s gun as it once more focused on it’s target. Keith hadn’t even felt Shiro move, much less aim for Akira. 

Akira regarded them with a carefully neutral expression before saying, “When you are able to pilot the _White Lion_ once more, I will take you to Altea.” Keith’s dropped blade was held up in offering. “I don’t know what she will decide. But if anyone can talk her out of this madness, maybe it is you.” 

“You really are Keith, aren’t you?” Shiro asked, warring between love and hatred as he met Akira’s calm gaze. 

“As true as you are my Shiro.” Akira murmured, his haunted gaze brightening for just a moment as he smiled down at his lost love. “...can he pilot?” He asked after a moment, the both of them turning to Keith’s broken body. 

“Fuck off.” It would have come out harsher, but Keith choked on blood halfway through the snarl. The pain of his broken nose was starting to flare again and Shiro winced with sympathy when Keith groaned. The _White Lion_ would be unable to move without all Pilots, leaving them grounded for the time being. 

They seemed to be at an impasse, unsure how to proceed, when Shiro remembered. “Maybe Honerva can wormhole us to the Altean coordinates.” 

Keith was about to agree, was sitting up to do so when he caught Akira looking at them with a curious gaze. The Altean turned to Shiro and asked, softly, 

“Shiro, who is Honerva?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's fanart of Akira up on my twitter ;)


	4. Chapter 4

The healing pod created an odd sensation that none of the medics had been able to prepare Keith for; it was cold and washed over you like waves of the ocean, but you could open your eyes and be free of the tell-tale sting of salt. Not that Keith could keep his eyes open for long. His injuries had made Shiro choke with horror when they peeled him out of his DriveSuit -- Keith echoed the sentiment with his own strained whine and felt the dried blood crack with each movement then grow wet again with fresh pain to follow. 

Through the fevered part of his memory he could remember others in the room, but his opened eyes couldn’t focus enough to put names to water-distorted shapes. 

Shiro. Shiro was there. The handprint against the pod was clear, especially with their wedding band visible and tapping ever so gently against the glass. Keith was too weak to fight the water so the best he could do was drag his fingers along the inside. 

Cold. The water was so cold.

But the cold felt nice, now. It kept him grounded, aware just enough that he didn’t let his mind cut off completely. The ghost Drift was still lingering just outside of his reach, feeding him phrases that made no sense and emotions too complex to name. Some time must have passed since he last opened his eyes, as he had enough sense to piece together that the Alteans were currently meeting their Earth counterparts. 

The hand was still pressed to the glass. Keith felt strong enough to return the gesture this time, and smiled when Shiro’s fingers tapped in response. He was anxious.   
  
_It’s rude to tap on the glass._ Keith tried to reach out across their shaky connection. _Don’t bother the fish._

_Get some rest, Keith._

Ever eager to soothe the worry from his husband’s heart, Keith closed his eyes and let the song of the waves take him.

…

Gentle hands prying away the oxygen mask were what finally woke Keith, though the warmth pressed to his side was coming in at a close second. Tremors started to shake through his body -- the heat had reminded his body just how cold the healing pod had been in the worst way.

“Shiro.” Keith gasped, eyes blinking open. 

He felt it then -- one hand smooth and warm, the other cold but just as lovingly gentle. The halting cold of a wedding band, catching against his jaw in a welcome reminder. The prosthetic pulled away to brush back his bangs while his other hand kept Keith still on the bed where he had been dried off and tucked in. It was still too cold. Keith curled closer despite the hands’ insistence on staying still, eyesight blotted out by a broad, familiar expanse of chest. The sigh that eased out of him was borderline pornographic. 

“Nothing changes, does it?” An amused voice asked from across the room. Keith, but not Keith. Akira. 

“No.” Shiro soothed his hand down Keith’s back instead, content with this change of plans. “It’s part of the reason I want to keep him from the diplomatic talks. You and I both know he would hate them.” His voice was soft and incredibly fond, but even moreso when directed to Akira. “It’s the reason you’re hiding in here, after all.” 

“I don’t need to be present to watch the witches rip each other apart.” Akira bit out. 

Shiro chuckled, the rumble in his chest making Keith want to purr in return. “That’s not very diplomatic of you, Emperor regent of Altea.” 

“It’s diplomatic that I’m letting you do _this_.” Presumably, Akira was motioning to Keith with his face buried into Shiro’s very warm chest, because Shiro just laughed again. “He might not be able to tell the difference in his weakened state, but I can.”

_Wait._

“You are the one that broke his body and inadvertently made his husband stand an exhausting vigil.”

_Uh…._

“Then we should dump him into Shiro’s bed and be done with it.”

_Wait wait wait._

The man holding Keith was not Shiro. 

Keith’s eyelids had fluttered shut before but now he was wide awake and he pushed from that warm embrace hard, enough to be able to crane his face up. This was not his Shiro, though he looked achingly similar. His hair was slightly longer and still black, strands brushing against Keith’s face as he leaned up on his elbows to get a closer look. Keith reached up and ran his hand over the scruff of his five o’clock shadow, felt the jaw move as Shiro smiled shyly, and _knew,_ as if the pointed ears and black markings under his eyes weren’t a dead giveaway in the first place. 

“Good morning,” Kuron murmured. “Keith.” 

…

It wasn’t but ten minutes after Keith woke that Shiro was fumbling into the room, obviously sleep-deprived as he sank to his knees and embraced him. Keith, relieved to be united with his actual husband, buried his face into Shiro’s neck and breathed. He didn’t feel self conscious about their little audience -- because if anyone was to understand, it would be themselves. 

“I’m okay.” Keith reassured Shiro softly, knowing he was the reason for the dark circles of insomnia that currently aged Shiro. 

“You scared me.” Shiro whispered. “You really scared me, Keith.” 

“I’m not going anywhere.” The promise felt more believable now that the worst was supposedly behind them, but he hoped it still felt as universally-binding as he meant. He pulled Shiro closer still, until they were both kneeling on the bed, and kissed him in apology. 

When they finally pulled apart, Keith felt almost territorial when he realized the other two were still present. But the universe continued to spin after all, and they had been allowed their moment to breathe. It only made sense that they would be ripped away from their healing as soon as it was considered complete.

“If you’re well enough to move, we should wake the others and start the diplomatic talks. They didn’t want to start without your input.” Akira uncrossed his arms as he stood, but he still looked tense -- unsure. 

“I can go.” Keith wasn’t sure what kind of strange, silvery skinsuit they had put him in for the healing pod, but Shiro was just wearing his undersuit right now so it wasn’t like he’d be the only one underdressed. Akira had hardly been affected by the previous fight so he still looked fresh enough in his Paladin armor. The tense set to his shoulders was still unsettling, though. 

“No. Let them rest, Akira. It won’t be long before morning.”

 _There_ was the reason for Akira’s tension. Kuron’s tone demanded consideration if not complete servitude, but Akira still frowned. He relented because he both hated meetings and loved his husband -- which Keith was momentarily grateful for. The healing pod had cleaned him of any blood caked into his skin, but he still felt unnecessarily slimy.

Keith thought Kuron’s insistent request would mean that they would leave -- was all the more surprised when Kuron shifted closer and glanced between the two. “You challenged Akira in the hopes of saving your team. I want to know why.” 

The question was out of the blue but both men immediately knew the answer. After all, this reasoning had been what Keith had used to convince the team to keep from striking that final blow.

“The way Voltron fought reminded me of Shiro’s old fighting style. It was by the books, clean-cut.” Keith wet his lips and continued with Shiro’s slight nod. “I thought Voltron was led by you. I knew if I could convince anyone to end this fighting, it would be you.”

“But you got me instead.” Akira murmured, his eyes on Kuron. 

“You didn’t hesitate when you saw me. Only Shiro.” There was no pain in the statement -- Keith had been ready to kill on that field of flowers, too, had he had the skill and experience to actually pull it off. “You called him Shiro. Why?”

The room steeped in silence at that, choked off like Keith’s windpipe under Akira’s sure grasp just hours before. The tension continued to grow as Kuron ducked his head and ran his hands through his hair, an anxious quirk that military grade buzz-cut Shiro had never been allowed to develop. Keith watched with rapt attention as Akira pulled himself from the wall and placed his hand soothingly on Kuron’s shoulder until he stopped in his motions. 

Kuron met Keith’s gaze then, just for a second, but the raw power that lingered there made him feel ice-cold, like he had been forced into the healing pod again. 

This was dangerous. These _men_ were dangerous. 

Even if they wore the same faces and called with the same voices, they were too different. Too strange. 

Shiro had been right; _“This Voltron fights to conquer. This Voltron is not us.”_

Akira had been telling the truth too; _“But even if we are the same man, our realities shaped us differently. I do not kill and conquer for_ her _sake, Keith.”_

This reality had taken both men and broken them into something harsh, jagged. Both men sat there, no longer aware of the blood staining their hands -- but Keith could smell the stench, could see the hunger it had left to forever haunt them in the furthest depths of their eyes. 

Keith was a fool to think he was safe in his own company.

The path set before Akira may not have been of his own make, but he continued to drench it in blood. Would continue, everlasting, until someone plucked the blade from his hand.

Shiro came to the realization the same time Keith did, his hand twisting in Keith’s sweaty grip. Keith couldn’t keep his gaze on any one point of the room, his heart pounding so hard he could barely hear Shiro’s own outcry over their ghost Drift. All they could do was watch as their future was weighed in the backlight purple glow of the healing pods that swallowed the room. 

Keith, as always, refused to face death without his teeth bared in challenge. “You want something from us.” 

Kuron gave a small, calculated nod, and deemed them worthy. “Yes.”

…

  


Despite refusing breakfast that morning, Shiro still pressed a ration into his hand at the start of their meeting with an insistence that was hard to refuse. Keith ripped open the wrapper with his teeth and ate sullenly until Shiro stopped tapping his fingers along his waist with impatience. 

He lifted his gaze as he ate and met Kuron’s curious stare. The events of the night before rushed back in a blink of an eye and the ration dropped like lead into the base of his stomach because of it. 

Akira entered the room and, seeing that everyone of importance was present, took his seat at the head of the table. 

Since they were all allowed the remainder of the night to rest, Keith felt fresh -- he had been allotted a dip in their power shower and a fresh pair of Altean clothes to change into, with high collars and a fantastical flair to them that Shiro would normally be gushing over. But he wasn’t in the mood, eyes downcast, and all Keith could muster was a kiss on his cheek as comfort. The sour mood still didn’t prevent Keith from raking his gaze over Akira’s royal garb, reminded once more than when he had met Keith on the field and announced himself as an envoy, he was really just being humble. 

Here he really did look the part of Emperor Regent of Altea, dressed in heavy white and gold armor that made him look as broad as Shiro, with a black cloak clasped at the shoulder. It felt almost narcissistic to admire himself like this, but Akira cut an impressive figure against the throne and Keith couldn’t help but wonder if he would look just as notable. 

“Let’s begin.” Akira motioned to the woman sitting to his left, who stood in a slow, almost pained motion. Keith recognized her as this reality’s Honerva -- though here she was known as the Empire’s witch, Haggar. Her slow, feeble motions did not make Keith feel any more sympathetic towards her, for Honerva sat right beside her and glared at her counterpart with a venom that should have struck her dead on the spot. 

“Your Grace, why have we invited these foreign creatures into your home?” Haggar asked with a sweep of her hand. “They came with the intention of destroying Voltron and yet you have found it necessary to feed them, clothe them, and provide them with a place to rest. I had warned you of their return and yet you invite danger into this very castle.” 

“They tell us that the peace Voltron has wrought is not peace at all, but a senseless invasion of territories that affect not only the lives of the inhabitants, but also mirroring realities. These orders to bring a unity by domination came from Empress Allura herself, who, due to her unfortunate comatose state, we can only communicate with through your magic.” Akira pressed his lips into a hard, unrelenting line as he demanded, “Tell me again what Empress Allura wishes for her Empire.” 

All eyes, fixed to Akira, now turned to his Witch. Akira’s clear bias against her did not seem to scare her at all -- in fact, she stood tall and full of grace as she answered. “You remember as well as I. Empress Allura said to unite the galaxy at any cost -- in her weakened state, any and all insubordination poses too high a risk. As her warmonger, you were to lead Voltron to a new future.” Haggar bent her head in reverence. “That is what the Empress wishes.” 

“Then if I were to have our guest verify this, you think she would hear the same?” Queen Allura stood on cue and held her head high, gaze as venomous as Honerva’s own. It was only then that Keith saw the first twitch of anger across Haggar’s wrinkled features. 

A blood bath was coming. 

“May I remind the Emperor regent that our beloved Empress fell ill after performing arcane healing arts on his husband?” Her tone was no longer kind, even though her acting had been subpar to begin with. 

A scraping sound drew Keith’s attention away from Haggar -- he saw Kuron’s pale face and his death grip against the table, where the metal was bending under the curl of his claws. Kuron’s eyes were desperately on Akira, steadfast even though he looked physically pained as the witch continued along in her steady voice. 

“A man who, as I understand, is but a shadow compared to his original.” 

Akira’s sclera flooded yellow but he did not move, so still it did not appear that he was breathing. Keith found himself holding his breath, too, unable to ignore the tense grip in his stomach as Haggar continued. 

“Let us not forget that he first acted as an undercover agent that attempted to kill not only the Paladins and Empress, but you as well.”

“You forget yourself.” The teeth in Akira’s mouth were too long for his words to come out as anything but a growl, animalistic in a way Keith hadn’t seen on the battlefield. 

“I only mean to say that if any loyalties must be called to question, I think you should worry for your husband first and foremost.” And there it was -- Haggar’s threat. She lifted her eyes to Akira and smiled, thinking he would do nothing because of it. “Have I not been your loyal servant, your Grace? Though I understand the importance of appearing diplomatic, you and I both know there are better ways to deal with dissenters.” 

Kuron’s breath came in short, useless puffs, his face paling even more the longer Akira waited. Keith waited to fulfill his promise, was waiting for just the right turn of Haggar’s jaw, but it never came.

Instead, Honerva stood and pressed her palms to the round table. “Your Grace.” 

Akira’s slitted gaze settled on the next Witch. “Speak.” 

“Would you like for me to release the magic preventing your husband from breathing?”

She turned to Kuron, and upon seeing all color drained from his face, decided she did not need the Emperor regent’s permission to save his life. With a swipe of her hand the purple lightning that was restraining him was revealed and simultaneously broken. Haggar flinched back as if the other woman had simply turned and slapped her directly. 

While the Paladins rushed to Kuron’s side, Akira stood from his seat and drew his blade with an execution warrant burning pretty in his violet eyes. “Try threatening me now, Witch.” 

Chaos erupted in the hall at that -- Haggar threw up her hands in a burst of purple magic with Honerva responding in kind; Akira vaulted himself over the table with the intent to kill; the Altean Paladins all summoned weapons from nowhere in a flash of light while the _Jaeger_ Pilots drew their guns -- in that moment, fate was decided with the certainty of a coin flip. 

Akira got to Haggar first, transformed in his fury into a creature the likes Keith had never seen before -- the yellow sclera was a familiarity from their battle, yes, but the lilac skin and pointed fangs were new in a horrific way. Haggar saw the threat approaching and turned her dark magic on him, licks of purple lightning strong enough to make Akira snarl but not enough to stop his approach. He persisted, pressing closer despite his body’s seizing movements, until he was able to grab her arm. 

She screamed as he raised his blade, screamed as he brought it down. 

Keith felt Shiro against his back and turned into his embrace as Haggar breathed her last.

…

They were told that Empress Allura woke as soon as the Witch was slain. 

She was still weak from her forced slumber so no one but the other Alluras were allowed to visit. 

It was an honor that felt like anything but when offered by Altea’s blood-soaked Emperor regent. 

Besides, it felt wrong for the Pilots to be processing the aftermath with one of their own missing. Lance looked decidedly dejected without his partner, though the remainder of the group was quick to welcome him closer. Romelle took his hand and squeezed it gently, her fingers still trembling with the shock of watching the execution. 

Not nearly enough time passed before an Atlean advisor was sent to deliver them to the Empress. 

Keith linked his hand with Shiro’s in the hopes it would grant him strength only to be knocked breathless regardless. Empress Allura’s quarters were expansive, easily the largest room of the castle they had seen thus far, and mirrored the insides of the pocket reality. Crystals of all shapes and colors lined the walls in what appeared to be un-checked growth, until they exploded in size around the bed where she had remained trapped, so tall they nearly brushed against the ceiling. 

They thrummed with power but were still the most welcoming presence they had seen since arriving. 

“Pilots of Earth,” Empress Allura bowed her head in greeting, sitting ever radiant and neatly covered by her crystalline sheets, “I welcome you to my home.”

When she raised her eyes, Keith was struck by the uncanny resemblance to the Earth-born Allura standing at the foot of the bed and the younger Altean Allura sitting beside Altean Lance. As had been the pattern with the Paladins, the Empress was older by ten or so years but similar in nearly every other aspect. She appeared tired -- likely an aftereffect of the magic -- but stubborn still to greet her guests, and for that Keith knew she truly was Allura. 

“Or, is it more appropriate to welcome you to this reality?” She swept her gaze over their small group and smiled ever so softly, perhaps unaware that the vast knowledge contained in her blue eyes was enough to stun them. 

“Empress Allura.” Shiro, ever the unnamed leader of their group, stepped forward. Though he was still weak from the previous bloodshed, Keith was proud to see him stand tall and sure. “We come to you on behalf of Earth with the request that you end this galactic conquest once and for all.” 

He finished with a deep bow, one that Empress Allura returned with a smile. 

“I will see that all evil Haggar has brought by my name is rid of this universe and all other realities.” She declared. “It will take time, but it will be done. This is my promise as Empress of Altea.” 

“Thank you. Thank you, Empress Allura.” Shiro’s hands trembled as he stood straight again, but Allura only smiled at him kindly. 

“When I called you here with the last of my strength, I did not think you would manage to save me as well.” Allura turned her gaze to Honerva, who bowed in turn. “Honerva. It is good to see you no longer tainted with the Dark Being.” 

Keith felt lost in the conversation that followed, but was able to catch on to one key point. 

“...So my vision was true. You are both without the power to send yourself home.” At Honerva’s brief nod, the Empress sighed, soft and seemingly annoyed. “I used the last of my power and ripped a portal into that reality to offer an escape for both of you. You brought me the _White Lion_ , which is all well and good, but decidedly not what was required. Had I more power I suppose I could have connected with myself directly and flooded her with my vision, but --”

“Love.” Altean Lance interjected, squeezing her hand gently. 

“Oh. Quite.” Seemingly calmed by her husband’s quiet reminder, Empress Allura cleared her throat. “If we combine our powers you will be able to return home.” 

“I would happily lend my assistance.” Honerva said. 

“This applies to you as well, Honerva, should you wish it.” 

“No.” Honerva was quick to object, her voice so sharp that it startled even Keith. “No, if you must send me anywhere, Empress, I would be here. I gave myself so long ago to undo the evils I had seeped into the stars -- if I can do anything to bring back the universe my son so loved, I would ask to remain here.” 

The slightest waver in her voice betrayed her before the tears fell -- soothed only when Empress Allura reached out and took her hand. “We would be honored.” 

There must have been some deeper connection there that Keith had never noticed, because even Queen Allura and the Earth-made Allura stepped forward and slid their hands over Honvera’s in welcoming acknowledgement. 

“Let this be your first step towards healing.” Empress Allura whispered.

Later, when the _Jaeger_ Pilots were allowed free reign of the castle while waiting for repairs to the _White Lion_ , Kuron approached Keith and Shiro. He looked shy, almost, but more present at the same time. 

“I know you were prepared to help.” Kuron said, eyes glued to Keith. “I appreciate your willingness to fulfill your promise.” 

“We weren’t much help, in the end.” The hidden knife had felt like a hot brand against Keith’s thigh, and he was secretly grateful he had not had to use it. Even still, he could imagine Haggar’s blood was there; burning into his flesh, on his hands, splattered against his chest. 

Keith hadn’t seen his Altean counterpart since the Witch fell. 

The hesitance there must have been obvious, because Kuron sighed with unmistakable fondness. “Akira is still talking to Empress Allura. He wanted to strip his title as soon as possible and she was willing. But I don’t know if he’ll be done by the time you are prepared to leave.” 

“Oh. Okay.” Keith squirmed under Kuron’s ability to read him so easily, unsure if it was a pleasant discovery or not. 

“Will the portals close after we leave?” Shiro pressed his hand to Keith’s shoulder, immediately soothing his confusing twist of emotions. 

But the question was a puzzle to all three of them. Did they want these realities to remain connected? There were benefits, yes, but the whole reason these conflicts had popped up in the first place was _because_ of said connection. Kuron shook his head. “I don’t know. Because Empress Allura has already created a tie between the realities, she could easily re-locate and reconnect them again, but… that’s unfairly one-sided.” 

“No one other than those here really know about the portals, back on Earth.” Keith frowned. “Everyone thinks the Kaiju came from the center of the planet or something.” 

“So if anything else came, it might be viewed as a threat, too. Initially.” The reception for the Alteans might be a bit better, considering they looked vaguely human, but there was no guarantee. 

Kuron nodded, understanding in how fear sometimes created a monster out of thin air. “I see.” He pressed his fingers to his black Altean marks and cast his gaze down to his feet. 

There was nothing Keith hated more than a sad Shiro -- er, Kuron. 

“I don’t know what say we’ll have in this -- I think in the end, it will be the Alluras that decide. But,” Both men watched Keith as he struggled to articulate everything, blush coloring his cheeks as he mumbled, “I feel like there’s still so much to learn about both of you. About this reality. Closing the portals would mean losing everything.” 

“Keith.” Shiro gasped. 

“It’s not for us to decide.” 

They all turned towards Akira, approaching down the long hallway that led to Empress Allura’s bedchambers. He wore fresh clothing, was even smiling as he approached Kuron and kissed his cheek. “Love.” 

“Then it is done?” Kuron asked, expression soft. 

“Yes.” Akira kissed him again, this time on the lips, once, then a second time, greedy until Shiro pointedly cleared his throat. They had been trying to discuss something, after all. Akira looked peeved as he continued, saying, “The Empress will close the portals. It is what she and Honerva have decided is best.” 

It was a perfectly sound decision but the disappointment still tasted so bitter. Keith squeezed his eyes tight, unable to face the truth if just for a moment, then opened them to Akira and Kuron’s amused looks. 

“What?” He didn’t mean to sound venomous, but bit it out anyway. 

“I’ve petitioned the Empress for a review in a deca-phoeb. Kuron and I have unfinished business to conclude and Earth needs time to heal.” Akira shrugged, his grin boyish and so like Keith, it was once more hard to tell the difference between the two. “You’ll see us again, though at this point I’m not sure why you would want to.” 

“He likes to say for the sake of all the Altean technology he wants to dig his hands into,” Shiro raised a single eyebrow at his husband, “but I know it’s because he wants a re-match.” 

“Shiro!” Keith sputtered, caught in the truth of it. 

“Make it worth my time and I’ll fight you, kit.” Akira grinned. 

But the endearment shocked Keith, bad enough for Shiro to catch the thread of thought, and they stared at Akira until he frowned. “What?” 

“You asked me -- during the battle, if I was raised with love. I thought because of that, you never met Mom.” 

Akira’s frown deepened. “I never knew either of my parents. The term...it is from the Blades of Marmora. It is for young Galra, of which I am half. Your mother uses this term?” 

“So did my Dad, before he passed.” Keith watched the other man go tense like a piece of steel, eyes wide. “What?” 

“What was your father’s name?” 

When Akira and Keith sprinted to the hangar only to see Krolia already embracing this reality’s version of her husband, Keith knew that a deca-phoeb couldn’t come soon enough. 

It took some time, but Krolia finally pulled away to greet both of her kits, tearing up right along with Akira when he could only unsuccessfully choke back tears -- first with the knowledge that Sub-Commander Tex of the Blades was too ashamed of his past to come forward as his father and second with the joy of being able to meet a mother he would otherwise never know. 

Keith was in a similarly embarrassing position, because he hadn’t been able to hug his father in ten years and the familiar scent of him coaxed out tears to match Akira’s. Shiro joined in for the hugs, laughing all the while when he pulled Kuron in, too. 

It felt cruel to be pulled away from that. 

With the promise of reuniting in the future, it wasn’t so hard to return home. The welcome party was a nice note to end on, especially with the memory of the Queen Allura waving goodbye to them before she stepped into her own portal home.

Keith felt the squeeze of Shiro’s hand on his shoulder and turned towards him, matching his smile. The party continued as they slipped away, the quiet of the roof a welcome change for Keith’s whirling emotions. There were a thousand things to do now that they were home, including dealing with all the Kaiju that had moved in while they were away, but Shiro wiped all that worry away with a simple kiss. 

The rush of the ocean waves matched the thundering quick beat of Keith’s heart as he leaned into the kiss, alive and well and better despite everything that had been thrown into their path. “Shiro.” 

They pulled apart, just a breath separating their lips as Shiro waited, ever patient while Keith collected his thoughts. 

“Could you feel me, there in the field?” He asked, voice suddenly watery. His heart, treacherous as it was, had decided to fill him with melancholy. 

“Yes.” Shiro closed the space between them by pulling Keith in his lap and wrapping his arms tight around him in a hug. The press of his cheek to Keith’s temple was as familiar as the sound of the ocean. “It felt it so fully I could barely aim my shot.” 

It was almost cruel how, the one time Keith wished that Shiro could not feel him through the Drift, that it was amplified tenfold. The fight against Akira had dragged out each emotion coursing through him and hand-fed it back to Shiro in a way he had never been able to articulate. “I meant everything, Shiro.” Keith choked. “Every memory, new and old, everything I have ever dreamed for you,” his voice broke, barely audible against the rush of the waves below, “every future we build together -- I want it, I’ve always wanted you, anything you want, just so -- I just want to be with you --” 

His hands clawed at Shiro’s back, gripping into the fabric in the vain hope to stop his trembling. “I felt the blade at my throat and only thought of you!” 

“The fighting is over, Keith.” Shiro promised, lips to Keith’s ear, all for Keith, only for Keith. “We don’t have to be scared anymore.” 

“I thought of you, only you.” Keith rambled, unfiltered as he voiced what they had both seen on the field. “I was wrong, Shiro, even through different realities, I’m still the same. I was willing to die -- and you, you were willing too.” First on the field, while cradling Keith’s broken body, and then again in the conference room when Haggar lost her mind. Countless other times, maybe. 

Shiro was quiet for a moment and in that time the only sound was the call of the ocean. For as long as he remembered, the ocean had been tied to his life. Those deep, dark waters had not always been regarded with a morbid sense of dread. At one point, Keith had marveled in the mysteries still undiscovered. 

Keith had wanted to dive into the waters and find that unknown. 

Shiro’s eyes were to the stars while Keith had been holding his breath and diving into their perfect reflection. It was no different, now, except Keith was running out of air.

“Shiro died.” Keith whispered. “Akira told me.” 

“I know.” 

The waves swelled in one last crash, the spray flicking over their huddled forms. Keith shivered at the sudden cold and felt Shiro’s grip tighten in response. He blamed the wet streaking down his cheeks on the ocean that forever mocked him. 

“If we stay here, the fight will continue.” Keith said. For the Kaiju that now called Earth home, for the _Jaegers_ and their Pilots, they would have to bite and claw and scream for their rights to live. This could be their end.

“We already won one fight,” Shiro said, ever fearless in the face of death, “what’s one more?” 

Keith pressed closer. “I’m tired of fighting.” _I’m tired of thinking I could lose you._

The ocean had calmed enough for Keith to hear the lingering music from the party below; he wondered, briefly, if anyone noticed they were missing yet. Lance would probably make a snide remark about the lovebirds only for Allura to giggle shamelessly, with Pidge and Hunk groaning in unison. Maybe Krolia and Kolivan would be in their own corner, talking about preparations they would need to make in order to be available for the upcoming wedding. 

Romelle would no doubt be talking to Coran about all they had experienced, waving her arms and matching the energy the other man put into his appropriate reactions. Matt had to have at least three plates worth of food already in him, if not more. The base was alive and full of merry excitement. 

And yet, Keith was happiest in his husband’s arms. 

“How many Kaiju did Pidge confirm had nested while we were gone?” Shiro finally asked. 

It took a moment, but Keith remembered. “Eight.” Kosmo didn’t really count, so it was more like seven.

“What do you say to getting married tomorrow and then flying out to observe those Kaiju?” When Keith raised his head in question and saw Shiro’s own red-rimmed eyes, he killed his response to let his husband continue. “I think the visits would take us a year, total.” 

“A year.” Keith repeated. Allura, before leaving for her own reality, had confirmed the conversion of a deca-phoeb to Earth time. In a year, Empress Allura would arrive. 

“In a year, it won’t be just us fighting anymore.” Shiro pressed gently.

“You just want a year-long honeymoon.” Keith accused with no malice. 

“Yeah. What of it?” 

Shiro’s answer was so shockingly _him_ that Keith burst out laughing, his head thrown back as they both laughed, against the sun, the stars, and everything else that tried to fuck them over. 

“Fuck. Okay. Yeah, Shiro, yeah.” Keith finally acquiesced. 

“Yeah?” Shiro pulled him close again, this time for something sweeter than a hug. Keith let his kiss answer for him, breathless by the time they parted. 

“How many times are you going to have to save me before this is all over?” Keith asked, feeling like he had finally been pulled from the depths of the Pacific. 

Shiro kissed him again before promising, “As many times as it takes.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for joining me! I hope this worked as a appealing end to the PacificRim AU. The fic was certainly indulgent, and maybe got off track a few times, but I had fun writing it so I hope you enjoyed reading it. 
> 
> Also please note that this is technically not the end. There will be one last part (currently in the works). 
> 
> 4some, anyone?

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are appreciated and keep my motivation up! Come yell w/ me on Twitter @formsheith <3


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